Dragon's Winter a Jane and the Dragon Fanfic
by Blackmoondragon1415
Summary: A stormy night brings changes that no one expects and awakens old legends that have been sleeping for thousands of years. Unfortunatly, not all of these legends are good ones.  Reviews are welcome.DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1: The Storm of Change

Dragon's winter:

_Jane and Dragon get along fairly well for not being from the same species—Jane, a human girl and Dragon. (I hope you know what he is!) But recently, strange visions of another dragon egg mixed with the writing on the wall and the "monster" that haunts Dragon have put the two of them on edge. Meanwhile, neither knows that Dragon's visions are in fact reality. Ahi, a young girl with a troubled past and present, finds the mysterious egg. When it hatches, Ahi must try her best to hide the baby dragon. This proves to be no small feat as there is a group of boys who seem to be on—and possibly in-- on Ahi's secret. When Jane and Ahi meet, how will their dragons fair against the great evil coming?_

Well, that's the good summary. Below is the whole I don't own such and such stuff.

I don't own any of the Jane and the Dragon characters. I do own Ahidaha, Lightnose, Kai, Shadow, Tigre, Julian, Dan, Ankoku, Itami, L, Kouyou, Jakku, Bones… The list goes on, but I don't want to bore you to death with it. Just read, please.

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Dragon's winter

Chapter 1: The Storm of Change

CRASH! BOOM! Jane sat straight up in her bed with a shriek as her window blew open. Ordinarily, this wouldn't have bothered her, but tonight was a different case, considering that it was thundering outside. She ran to the window, closed, and latched it firmly. As she settled back down into bed, a thought entered her head. _I hope Dragon is holding out. _

Dragon, meanwhile, was in his cave, looking out at the rain.

_How am I supposed to sleep with this entire racket? _He thought as another loud boom echoed throughout the valley. After a couple hours, the thunderstorm dwindled down into a light rain shower. Listening to the light rhythm of the rain, Dragon slowly slid off into his dreams.

_At first, it seemed like he was staring at a grove of trees in some field, but almost instantly, a flash of light appeared near the first branch of one of the trees. An egg appeared there, large and jet-black. As it sat there in the crook of the branch, a lightening bolt shot through the trees and struck it broadside. He gasped as it fell several feet and hit the ground, the spot on which the lightening struck gently smoking. _

_Then, something amazing happened. The clouds parted for a moment, just enough to let some moonlight in, and when it did, the spot on the egg that had been burned turned a smooth shade of silver, like a star in the night sky. Some time went by, and Dragon saw a human being, a girl, come into the grove. At first, he held out a paw, trying to stop her from getting any closer to the egg, but she passed right through him, like he was a ghost. She looked down at the egg, touched it lightly, and seemed to consider something. Then she picked the egg up, and put it gently into her sack, making sure it was cushioned protectively. He watched as she left the grove and headed toward a town on the horizon._

"Dragon!" a cry erupted through his dream. It faded and he slowly opened his eyes.

Jane was standing over his head, looking very scared.

"Dragon!" she cried again, and this time he answered her, noting the fact that his head was throbbing lightly.

"Don't yell… my head hurts…" he said, and to his surprise, Jane threw himself onto his nose, hugging it tightly. "Oh, Dragon…"

"Did I miss something?" he asked, bemused by Jane's reaction.

"You didn't answer when I called from outside, so I came in and found you lying on your side…"

Dragon took a quick look at where he was and realized that his position had indeed changed. When he had fallen asleep last night, it had been on his stomach and toward the front of the cave. Now he was on his side and in the back.

"…and the first two times I tried to wake you, you didn't stir." She finished, looking a little worried. "Are you, feeling well?"

"Fine, except for my head. Oww…" he said as his head gave another painful throb. Jane's worried look was instantly elevated.

"I'm fine, Jane, really." He said, noticing the look.

"Your head hurts?" she asked.

"A little." He winced as his head gave another throb, although it was less painful than before.

"So, are we going on patrol?" Dragon asked, ignoring his head.

"I don't know… Are you sure you're alright?" she asked.

"Like I said before, I'm fine." He said, putting emphasis on the last word, but the effect was ruined slightly by another throb.

"Well, if you're alright then, I guess we can go."

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Now, remember, dear readers: reviews are welcome, so press that little blue button down there to let me know what you all think!


	2. Chapter 2: Aftereffects

Sorry this is so short. They'll be longer ones, I promise.

Chapter 2: Aftereffects.

A few hours later, the two were up in the air, flying over the outer areas of the kingdom.

"Seems quiet down below." Jane called.

"Right." Dragon said. Then he received a shock. There was a wide field below them with a grove of trees on it, just like the one he had seen in the dream! As he realized it, his head gave such a painful throb that he stopped short.

"Dragon, what's wrong? What did you see?" Jane asked, snapping him out of the shock.

"Thought I saw something." He said, lightly rubbing his head.

The rest of the patrol went by quietly, apart from the rhythmic throbs that Dragon was feeling in his head. Then, after about an hour, the patrol was over and they returned to the castle, Jane had to go in for a lesson, so Dragon settled down outside on the wall.

He winced as his head throbbed and a fight of staves started up in the practice yard. Normally, he would have paid attention so he could cheer Jane on, but today he was preoccupied by the strange dream, his headache, and the fact that he found the place were the dream had taken place. The fact that last night's sleep had not been a restful one also wore him down, and, with all of these thoughts spinning around inside his head, he dozed off right there on the wall.


	3. Chapter 3: The Price of Being Different

See, I told you the next one would be longer. Let me know what you think of it so far.

I don't own any of the Jane and the Dragon Characters.

Chapter 3: The price of being Different

Meanwhile, in the village, a girl woke with a start as a furious rapping sounded on her door.

"Arise, girl, there is work to be done! Get up! Now!" a shrill voice called through the door. The girl sat up

with a sigh; banging her head on the low ceiling of the dingy, spider infested room. She rubbed her head, as

it throbbed unpleasantly from making contact with the ceiling. She felt the patches of scales on her face, and

sighed. Boy, she wished she could be normal, like everyone else. She would be content to live in this

condition for the rest of her life, as long as she was normal. As she pulled on some old and worn clothes,

she happened to look over at her tiny table and see the egg. She walked over, and lightly brushed a hand

against its surface, marveling at how smooth and warm it was. She had an idea of what it was, no doubt

about that. It was definitely a dragon egg. She didn't know much about what to do, but she knew someone

who might.

Groaning slightly as the sunshine streamed into her light- sensitive eyes, she hurried down the cobbled street

into a shady-looking shop at the corner. Inside were a bunch of cluttered shelves, and an old, worn desk

that was half ready to collapse from the weight of the objects on it. The girl moved along the shelves warily

and as quiet as a shadow.

A loud clank above her head made her jump, and she looked up to see a large brown and yellow cat,

looking some what like a leopard, crawling around on the rafters. With a snarl, it leapt down on the poor

child, who let out a scream and fell back into one of the shelves with a bang. This racket seemed to rouse

the store's occupant, who came out from a curtain in the back, yelling "No! Leave that poor girl alone!

Alone, I say!" At the sound of this voice, the cat retreated back into the darkness. The girl covered her

eyes as some drapes were thrown open, and light streamed into the room, throwing the figure into sharp

relief. She was tall, wearing a long cloak, a hat and with a headband over one eye. Upon seeing just who

her visitor was, her face broke into a small smile.

"You're the serving girl from down the road, right? Pleasure to see you again! So, what owes me the great

pleasure of seeing you on this fine day?" she said in a pleasant tone.

"I-I wanted to ask you something…"

"Ask, then."

"I wanted to know about… about dragon eggs, and baby dragons?"

The owner gave her a funny look for a moment before saying anything.

"Well, let's see, where to begin? The first thing to know is that an egg should be kept warm, for most part.

They should also be kept in a pretty comfortable environment. As for the chicks, they should be given a

wide amount of space in which to roam, lots of food, mostly plants, and mind what you say around them, or

at least what they hear other people say."

"Why?" the girl asked, grimacing slightly as she already thought about several things that the egg wouldn't

have, before and after it hatched.

"They can mimic what they hear other people say, as they learn to talk. Yes, they do." She added, seeing

the stunned look on the girl's face.

"They also need the space to learn to fly and find food. Why the sudden interest in dragon development?"

"Oh, no reason, just curious, I guess." The girl said with a forced grin, earning her a skeptical look from the

owner. Deciding it was time leave, she quickly said: "Thank you for the information, Miss…"

"Oh, there's no need to be so formal. Just call me Kai."

"Okay, well then Kai. Thank you." She said, and ran out.

Once Kai was sure she was gone, she rubbed her ears lightly. The child's scream was so shrill and high-

pitched it had actually hurt her ears which was odd for a human child, and why the sudden curiosity in

dragon eggs and hatchlings?

Could she have found that egg?


	4. Chapter 4: Turning Point

As I said before, I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Chapter 4: Turning points

Back at the castle, Jane approached the practice field, originally looking to practice with the dummy, but she instead found Dragon still sleeping on the wall.

_He's still there?_ She thought, and then quickened her pace, this time headed for the wall. Was he sleeping this time? Or…?

"Dragon!" she called, a little louder than she meant to.

There was a snort and Dragon pulled his head up, looking at Jane.

"Time for another patrol?" he said through a yawn.

Jane softened into a smile as she nodded.

"Of course, you big newt." She said, climbing up onto Dragon's back. Once he was sure she was on properly, he spread his wings and took of for the sky. From below, someone watched as they flew off into the sky.

"So this kingdom does have a dragon on its side. No matter, all I must do is take him out, and the kingdom will fall." Little did he know that it would get much harder than that…

Meanwhile, up in the sky, Dragon noticed the tension in Jane's body, and the way her hands would squeeze on his horns for about a second, and then release her grip.

"I feel much better, nothing like a good long snooze." He said, trying to break the uneasy silence.

"Are you sure? Your head doesn't hurt anymore?"

"Like I said, I feel fine. Now sit back and enjoy the ride."

In the village, the girl was busy waiting on tables, waiting for her break to come. She thought about the egg, tucked away in the small sack in her room, and hoped it would be warm enough.

"Hey, kid!" she jerked out of her thoughts to realize that she had walked right by the table that she was serving. The guy sitting at the table grabbed her and pulled her up into his face. She gagged lightly as his wine-breath reached her nose.

"What's the big idea, brat? You miss us on purpose?" he yelled in her face.

"No…" she gagged.

"Well, you're gonna regret it now, brat!" he yelled as he pulled back his fist, only to be stopped by someone behind him.

"Let her go, it was an accident, no harm done." His friend said, pulling on his buddy's arm.

"But she…" he said, and then thought better of it, and put her down. "Right, sorry, didn't mean that. Just got a little carried away."

"Are you okay?" the second guy said, kneeling down to help her up. He had brown hair that fell to his shoulders and a kind face with gentle eyes that were light electric blue.

"Dan, you really have to control your temper." Said a third guy at the table, shaking a head of flaming red hair. As she stood up, she saw his face, which was pulled into a big grin. On his face she saw three lines on either side, like cat whiskers. His eyes were and orange- brown color, with a slight sparkle to them. The one who had grabbed her was sitting back in his chair, crossing his arms. He had shaggy black hair, black eyes, which glittered with a certain hardness, but it instantly turned soft when he looked at her.

"You sure you're all right?" he asked.

"Yeah, fine." She said as she stood up, shaking her hair out of her face. As soon as she lifted her head, she wished she didn't. They each gave her a strange look for about a second, and she was instantly relieved when it vanished.

"So, what's your name, kid?" Dan asked.

"My name is Ahidaha."

"Girl! Get over here! You have another table to serve!"

"Oh, sorry! I've got to go! See you around!" she cried, turning around and running to the red in the face woman behind the counter.

"So, you think she's the girl?" Dan asked, giving the other two a highly doubtful look.

"You saw her face. She has to be the one."

"Looks like some kind of a rash to me, Julian." Dan said, rolling his eyes at the brown- haired one.

"You'll see." Julian replied mysteriously.

"Spacey one isn't she?" the red haired one asked. "She kind of reminds me of you in the morning."

"Ha ha, very funny Tigre." Julian replied.


	5. Chapter 5: Unseen Attack

Like I always say I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Sry I haven't updated sooner. I got tacked by one of the most horrifying, most gruesome things a high school student can face :_ midterms_. (I have survived! I LIVE!!)

Chapter 5: Unseen attack

Back at the castle, Dragon landed in the courtyard after a long patrol. Jane slid off of his back, and gently patted his head as he gave her his customary "Goodnight, shortlife. Sleep well" before flying to his cave in the mountain. Jane watched him fly away for a few moments, and then went to her tower to go to bed. On the way, she happened to meet Jester.

"So, lady knight, how was patrol?"

"Fine. I'm slightly worried about Dragon, though." replied Jane as she recounted the slightly nerve-wracking events of that morning, and how Dragon had seemed to have recovered.

"What do you think was wrong? He seemed fine the day before."

"Heavy sleeper?" Jester half- joked, causing Jane to crack a grin.

"Perhaps."

"Well, like you said before, he seems fine now. Bad news for the horses, of course."

Jane laughed once more as she made her way up the tower stairs to her room. As she crawled under the covers and settled down, she wondered if Dragon really was better; he had given her a nasty scare when he didn't wake up, even when she was practically yelling in his ear. She hoped the same thing didn't happen tomorrow. Or, maybe Jester was right, and it was just an incident that wasn't important.

Dragon landed at the mouth of his cave, was about to go inside, when he stopped. Something wasn't right. There was a strange smell on the air, and he didn't remember the light he saw, flickering like a fire on the wall. Eventually, his curiosity outweighed his caution, and he hesitantly peeked in. There was a fire over in the corner, and huddled near it was a man. Or at least, what looked like a man. His initial caution was suspended, and he walked boldly in.

"What brings a shortlife into my cave?" he asked, and the person turned around, and he saw that the human was wearing a cloak with the hood was pulled low over his face. Dragon tensed up as soon as the person stood up and drew a sword. He noticed that the air around them seemed to get colder and colder, at first he assumed it was a breeze, until the flames flickered and died, throwing them into darkness. It was unlike any other in the fact that it limited even his nightvision to the point where all he could see was faint shapes and different tones of darkness. Dragon could still see the outline of the human, but there was a change. He seemed to be, taller? As he was scanning the darkness, he heard a hoarse voice say: "Gerd udalf masrs."

There was a flash of light, a rushing sound, and something came down on his head. For a second, he saw stars, and out of the darkness came a large, leering, reptilian face, almost like a dragon, but it was monstrous. A loud roar echoed through the cave, and the very ground beneath him seemed to shift. He was on the ground, shocked and scared silly, but he recovered fast and made a run for it. The attacker watched him go, with a disappointed look on his face.

"Thought he'd be more of a challenge…" he murmured as he started the long trek down the mountain. "Still though, that was impressive that he could survive that kind of an attack and still get away." He said to himself as he watched Dragon go into the darkness.


	6. Chapter 6: The New Life

I don't own Jane and the Dragon, blah, blah. K let's get on with the story, shall we. :)

Just been watching an episode of Bleach, the one where we first see Kon. LOL. He's hilarious! And perverted, but who cares? He's fuuunny!! (Sry if I seem a little wacked out, having a slightly crazy night.)

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Chapter 6: The new Life

That night was not a restful one for Ahidaha. At first, that night seemed like any other, she went to bed the same as usual, but it ended with a real bang. When she first looked at the egg that night, it looked the same as it had that morning, so she didn't expect it when she woke up in the middle of the night to find it in pieces on the floor.

At first, she thought that the egg had fallen on the floor and broken, but she noticed that it had some type of slime from inside the egg had trailed off into another dark corner, were something was chirping and clicking lightly. She got out of bed, and moved slowly towards the sounds. Suddenly, out of the darkness, a small, scaly reptile crawled out, clicking pitifully. Her eyes looked straight into the hatchling's, and caught a childlike gleam to them, like the first time a baby sees it's mother. Shocked silly, Ahidaha sat down on the bed, and the little dragon came up to her, rubbing its head against her pant leg in a way that suggested 'feed me'. At first, she panicked; what did you feed a young baby dragon? Then she remembered her dragon book. She dashed over to her shelf, leaving a very confused dragon in her wake. Finding the heavy book, she plopped it down on her bed, but with the limited light she had, she couldn't read a single word on the page. She threw up her hands in defeat, but the little dragon was not ready to give up yet. It gave another loud chirp and a patch of silver scales on its nose just lit up like a light. The light it gave off was so strong that she could read the page perfectly, and found the chapter on what dragons eat:

_According to past records, the dragon is an omnivore, and will eat most plants, and some animals. The hatchlings, however, should be given something that is balanced in nutrients, but preferably not any meat until they are over 10 years of age and their teeth are almost developed. This also helps to avoid bad choices in eating sources further down the road._

As soon as Ahi took all this in, she shot of to the kitchen, and was back in several minutes with a couple choice vegetables in her hands. The dragon stared at them for a couple moments, and looked back up at her with a questioning look.

_It probably doesn't even know what food is yet. _She thought with a small chuckle as she picked up one of the vegetables, a carrot, and took a bite. She then held it out to the dragon, which followed her example, and upon realizing that it was edible, dug in with gusto. A couple minutes later, it yawned and settled down on her bed, closing its eyes sleepily.

"You need a name, right?" she whispered softly. A small hurr was the response. She thought about the dragon's strange ability, and finally, a name entered her head.

"Your name is Lightnose."

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Yay! The egg hatched! Oh, tell me what you think of the name, I was kind of trying to think about his speacial ability, and well, this is sort of what came out of it... Hope you like. 


	7. Chapter 7: The Boogey Monster Hunt

I don't own Jane and the Dragon or any of the characters. If you're wondering about the name, It's just something I came up with when I first started into this chapter (look at the first real paragraph and you'll see what I'm talking about.) Enjoy: )

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Chapter 7: The Boogey Monster Hunt

"I swear that there was someone in there!" Dragon said as the sunshine streamed into his now empty cave.

"Well, no one's in here now." Jane said, looking around the cave, with an exasperated sigh. It was like looking for the boogey-monster in a little kids room, only this little kid was a three-hundred-year-old dragon.

"B-but he was here! He was standing right there! He had a sword and…"

"I think you just had a nightmare, green lips." Jane said, rolling her eyes impatiently.

"But…"

"Let's go on patrol." Jane interrupted, cutting off Dragon's protest.

Dragon opened his mouth again, but he was silenced by a look from Jane.

"Alright." He said, giving in to her look. As soon as she climbed on, Dragon spread his wings and took off for the sky. At first, Dragon was quiet, and then he said:

"So, you really don't believe me?"

Jane was caught off-guard by the question, but bounced back and answered, "No I don't think you are lying, I just think that you may have exaggerated parts of the story."

"I didn't exaggerate!" Dragon said as he realized that it was a lost cause, fell silent, and stayed that way for the rest of the patrol.

When he pulled into the castle courtyard, he gave Jane just enough time to get off, and then he took off once more to the top of her tower. She watched him go, wondering if maybe he was right. Or, said the other side of her, it could just have been a vivid nightmare that he took too seriously. Unfortunately, she had no further time to ponder the thought, for she and Gunther began their usual match of staves.

"Give up, Jane! You cannot match me!"

"I can, and I will!" Jane said as she returned one of his blows.

This lasted for about an hour, and it was just about lunchtime, so Jane headed off in the direction of the kitchens, and Gunther moved off to the knight's quarters to eat alone.

"You seem in the highest of spirits, Jane." Pepper commented as she handed out servings of soup.

"A good patrol and a favorable match of staves will do that, Pepper." Jane replied with a grin.

Once the others had moved on to more absorbing conversations, Jane whispered to Jester.

"Things with Dragon have cleared up."

"Really?"

"Now he doesn't even want to go into his cave."

"Oh. How'd that happen?"

"He says he saw something in there last night that, well,..."

"Ah." Jester said, understanding immediatly. He wondered what could have happened in there that would have made Dragon afraid to go back.

Meanwhile, up in the tower, Dragon raised his head and inhaled. There was a strange scent on the air, but this scent was familiar, but new, like he knew it from somewhere. But how could that be? He wasn't even sure he recognized it. Pushing the thought out his mind, he settled down and listened to the voices of the humans bellow, all talking and laughing at the same time over lunch.

_Shortlives..._ he thought as he listened to the sounds below.

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So, what'd you think? Please review! 


	8. Chapter 8: Many Surprises

I don't own Jane and the Dragon, but Ahidaha and Lightnose are mine! No stealing them! Anyway, I found this funny quiz online, 'what type of dragon are you'. Some of the answers to a couple of the questions are hilarious! There's this one that has to do with what you think of humans, and the overall funniest answer had to be the one that says ' they look funny, they smell funny, they act funny, they taste funny, and they fight like girls!' If I've gotten you interested, look for the ' inner dragon online quiz'. It's one . Anyway, cutting off my ceaseless rambling, enjoy the new chapter!! ;)

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Chapter 8: Many surprises

"Girl! Wake up! You have work to do! Arise!"

Ahi's eyes slowly opened, and the first thing they saw was Lightnose, curled up in a little ball, still sleeping soundly. Ahi groaned softly as the heavy footfalls of Mrs. Johannes, the bartender and the lady who had taken her in when she was abandoned, faded down the hall. She could still recount exactly how it had happened, even to this day:

_It was a cold winter day out. The villagers escaped the freezing temperatures in any way they could, but for one girl, the chill would have marked her last winter. She was huddled up in a lean-to just nestled inside a space in between two buildings. Unfortunately, this lean-to was only good for keeping out the wind and rain, not the temperatures. That, coupled with a chill that she had caught late that fall, Ahidaha was slowly beginning to fade away._

_That afternoon, though the sun was high overhead, the earth below did not seem to warm up at all. Ahi shivered as the wind swept down the ally, like a chilling breath. She clutched at her fingers, which she was rapidly losing sensation to. Suddenly, she heard someone come down the street, and she looked down to avoid drawing attention to herself. Before she knew it, she was being given a loaf of bread and a wedge of cheese. She looked up in time to see a woman in her late fifties looking down at her. As they looked at each other head on, the lady said "How would you like to come and live with me?" _

_Ahi nodded vigorously._

"_But, in exchange for the room and food, you have to work for me as a serving girl."_

_Ahi thought about this for a moment, and then nodded once more._

"_Then come with me." _

Ahi was jolted back into the present by Lightnose rubbing against her still arm. She absentmindedly rubbed his head lightly, and then hurried through her routine. Just before she left the room, she held Lightnose's face up to her own and said "Okay, listen. I'm not going to be able to come back until midday, so you stay in here."

Lightnose's eyes scanned her face, and for a second, he seemed to understand. That is, until he playfully chirped and licked her face. Ahi put him down and started to head out, and looked down just in time to see Lightnose tagging along. Sighing, she knelt down so that her face was level with his, and said, slowly and more forcefully,

"Stay. Here. Please." Now she wasn't expecting him to get it, but Lightnose's eyes met hers, and now, instead of a playful look, in them was an understanding, an acceptance. Now, sure of the fact that she had been able to make herself understood, she turned to leave. Halfway to the door, she heard someone say behind her:

"S-s-st-st…"

She turned around, just in time to see Lightnose on her bed, trying to talk!

"St-st-sta-sta-sta" he said, trying to get his mouth around the words.

"C'mon you can do it… Stay…stay…ay…Just that one little part."

"Stay! Stay! Stay!" he cried over and over, overjoyed at getting it right.

"Right! Good job!" Just. Stay. Here! Okay? Stay here!"

"H-here?" Lightnose stuttered.

"Yes. Here!" She said, illustrating the point by tapping the bed.

"Stay." She said, putting him firmly on the bed.

Now she turned to leave, looking back over her shoulder several times to make sure he wasn't following, but he stayed resolutely on the bed, watching her go. It wasn't until the door closed firmly behind her that Lightnose curled up on the bed and went back to sleep.

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So, how was it? 


	9. Chapter 9: Talk Between Old Friends

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. I do own Kai and Shadow.

Life is so good. Just so freakin' good. Why am I saying that, you might ask? 'Cause I got tomorrow off, thanks to a slight epidemic at school! PRAISE BE SICKNESS!!! LIFE IS SO FREAKIN' HOLY HONEST-TO-GOD SWEET!!! Cough. Uh, got that out of my system. Enjoy the new chapter: )

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Chapter 9: Talk between Old Friends

Kai flipped the closed sign on her door with a sigh. Another day, another dollar, she thought to herself. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of something screeching faintly, as if it were coming from across a far field. The screeching got louder and louder, until it seemed to be coming from only a few feet away. Holding her ears, she ran into the back room and stopped in front of a mirror.

"Alright, alright! I'm here! You can stop!" she yelled at the mirror. The glass shimmered and the image of a black dragon appeared, looking slightly disgruntled.

_Yeah, yeah, and last time I was too quiet. _

"Either way, you're going to have to try to put a volume control on that. I don't want to attract any unwanted attention. So, why'd you call?"

_The egg is missing. I must have looked the room over So many times I wore a grove in the floor. It's just not there._

Kai stopped for a moment, thought, and then gave her friend a small grin. The black dragon looked back in confusion.

_What's so funny?_

"There is no need to look. The egg is fine and in good hands."

_Wait, Kai. I don't get it. What do you mean?_

"I know where it is, and that it has hatched. It already has a guardian, but I will watch over both of them if need be."

_Who is the guardian? No one like Ankoku, I hope. Is it?_

"No, no one like that."

_Who is it?_

"Just someone I happen to know."

_You'd didn't answer. Who is it?_

"Haven't changed at all, have you?"

The black dragon opened his mouth as if to argue, but closed it, and shook his head with a sigh.

_Alright, Kai, I know I can trust you. Just be careful and don't do anything stupid. I can't come to help you as fast as I used to. Don't make something happen that you might regret or is too big for you to handle, like last time. Remember what happened then. I never want it to happen again._

"Thanks for your concern. I'll be fine. Don't worry about me."

_I wish I didn't worry as much as I do._

"I'll be fine." Kai said, this time a little more firmer.

The image of the dragon gave her a half-mournful half-wondering look as the image on the mirror blurred and faded. Kai stood for a moment, watching the glass in a far-off way, before returning to the front of the store. She settled down in front of the desk, and watched the going-on's of the outside world.

"But, just how fine is she going to be?"

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Sry, that one seemed kinda short. I'll try to make a longer one next time.

Peace out.

Please review!


	10. Chapter10 The Sleepover, the Shadow,

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Just sitting in my room at around 2 am, uploading (darn sleeping problems got me again!) No, I don't have insomnia, I just have a really active mind that prevents me from falling asleep some nights. I write or draw when that happens. Tonight, I'm writing. Enough of my problems; enjoy the chapter:)

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Chapter 10: The Sleepover, the Shadow, and the Chat 

As night fell, Dragon and Jane came back from patrol.

Jane went off to have dinner, and Dragon stayed around the castle. While Jane was coming into the practice field, she happened to see Jester, leaning up against the archway.

"So, any luck?" Jester called.

"Umm, not really…" Jane said, "He's still convinced that something might be up in his cave."

"Any thought about it being a- "

"He's insisting he didn't have a nightmare. But-"

"Right, right."

"At least he hasn't become afraid of monsters, like the prince."

Jester blushed as he remembered to prince's short-lived fear of things like the monsters under his bed, and his own unsuccessful attempts to tell him otherwise. Jester bid Jane a hurried goodnight, and walked quickly over to his room, trying to hide the crimson that was beginning to work its way over the fool's face.

Jane was about to go to her tower, when she saw our favorite green lizard stealthily making his way to the roof of her tower.

"Dragon!" she called, now becoming less-than-amused with his antics.

"Just wanted to have a…a, you know, um…"

"A sleep over?"

"Yes! That!"

"Dragon, whatever may have happened up in your cave might have been frightening, but that doesn't mean you should be scared of your cave!"

"I'm not afraid of my cave! Just of what might be in it…" Dragon trailed off, now feeling slightly foolish. He had been trying to forget what had happened in his cave and dismiss it as a bad dream, but every time he did, he'd end up thinking about the face he saw. It looked almost like a dragon with death worn over, like it belonged in a horror novel or a scary children's story.

Jane, seeing his down look, cut in and replied.

"But, of course, if you do want to have a sleep over, feel free."

Dragon flashed her a grateful look before flying to the top of the tower and settling down for the night. Jane looked on, shook her head, and followed.

Later that night, Dragon was dozing off when a noise reached his ears, like something was down in the practice yard. Yawning, he looked down, only to see nothing.

_Must have been one of the horses, _he thought as he slowly drifted off, completely missing a shadow prowling around near the stables. Instead of moving towards the tower, however, it shot off, over the wall and out into the night.

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Sleepover! See ya tomorrow if my head calms down! 


	11. Chapter 11: Go to Kai

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Today is the day my brother does his science fair experiment, and my dad caught me watching Jane and the Dragon. –Sigh- I'll put it this way, it didn't go over very well. Oh, and our house is getting a new addition and my other brother, Sean, happened to see the worker using a staple gun. Apparently he thought it was a real gun. lol. Anyhow, enjoy the new chapter. :)

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Chapter 11: Go to Kai

Dragon wasn't the only one having problems falling asleep. Ahi too was having trouble dropping off. Lightnose, on the other hand, fell asleep as soon as he lay down. But Ahi's mind couldn't stop wandering. What would she do once Lightnose had grown too big to keep in her room? And his appetite seemed to be growing larger with every meal, to top it off. How would she provide for him in the coming years? A couple ideas entered, but didn't seem to be a permanent fix for the problem. As another idea was resoundingly rejected, a voice entered Ahi's head.

_Go to Kai._

"Wha- Wh-who's there?" Ahi cried, sitting up. In a small mirror, there was a foggy shadow. Taking on no specific shape, it rolled around the glass like a hazy blotch.

_Kai knows many things, go to Kai. She can solve your problem._

"Okay. Now, who are you?"

_Someone who's always been. Heed my message. Go to Kai._

And with that, the shape slowly blurred, and vanished.

Ahi looked at the mirror for a few seconds, then fell back onto her bed, debating if she was either crazy or sleep deprived.

Her hand brushed lightly over Lightnose's left flank as she pulled the covers up higher. He snuggled in closer, and Ahi had to suppress a small smile. Lightnose had brought a lot of changes into her life. First off, she never really had any friends she could talk to, even if he was just learning how. Next, it was nice to have someone that was even a little bit like her physically. It helped he get through the looks and crude remarks that people threw at her every day. When she fell asleep, she wasn't quite sure, but she knew that her life had changed, for the better.

Lightnose stirred lightly in his sleep and opened his eyes. The first thing he realized was that he was hungry. Very hungry. The little dragon crawled off the bed and landed with a muffled thump on the floor and a loud squeak. He crawled across the room, and nudged open the door, slipping out like a shadow. Minutes later, he was at the cabinets, nudging them open and pulling out a carrot. The familiarity of the food came to him, and he dug in noisily.

Mrs. Johannes shot up in her bed. Something was downstairs, eating by the sound of it. She got out of bed and grabbed a crowbar from under the bed. Probably an animal that wandered in. Ahidaha must have left the door unlocked by accident.

_That girl…_ she thought as she lightly pushed open the door, and crept down the stairs.

Lightnose's ears perked up, and he stopped eating. He could hear what sounded like something coming down the stairs, and the uncomfortable feeling of being watched set in. Not even daring to breathe, he moved back into the shadows, dragging his carrot with him. Even though he still had food, he didn't try to eat, yet.

Lightnose shivered lightly as he watched a short, dark shadow enter the room, holding something long, thin, and menacing. He drew back warily, only to gape as the shadow passed him by. What was this thing as blind as a bat? Not that he was complaining, but it was obvious were he was hiding. To a dragon, anyway…

Meanwhile, Mrs. Johannes was inspecting the vegetables that had been strewn all over the floor; the bite marks in them definitely didn't belong to any squirrel she'd ever seen, they were far too large, for one thing… She jumped as a small chirp echoed eerily throughout the room. Because of the echoes, it was hard to tell exactly where it was coming from, but some movement out of the corner of her eye told her were the intruder was hiding. Without warning, she dove at the animal, causing it to jump back, squealing with fear and surprise, and into a ray of moonlight. Mrs. Johannes jumped back in fright, and then advanced on the poor little dragon, waving the crowbar like a sword. Then she struck, catching the creature in the chest and sending him flying across the room. He hit the wall with a small thud and slumped down, covering his abdomen with a moan. It was around now that the noise woke Ahidaha, who came running, surveyed the scene, and put herself between the crowbar and the moaning dragon.

"Stand aside, girl. This thing was stealing our food."

"He's okay, I swear! He was just hungry, that's all…"

"Just hungry! Girl, this thing is an animal!"

"He is not!"

"Don't talk back to me! Now stand aside!"

"NO!"

There was a sickening thud, and Ahi fell to the ground, clutching at her bleeding face. Before she could recover, Mrs. Johannes kicked her full force in the chest, sending her into the wall. Ahi tried to block, but the hits kept coming. One hit managed to break her arm and another sent rockets of pain up and down it. Ahi fell to the ground clutching her arm, cringing as she realized that Mrs. Johannes was coming back for more. She closed her eyes, waiting for the hit. It never came. She opened her eyes, and saw Mrs. Johannes jumping around, howling in pain, with Lightnose clamping his sharp teeth on her hand.

"Get off me you animal!" she screamed, throwing him to the floor, raised the crowbar above her head, and almost brought it down when…

"NOOO!" Ahi cried putting herself between the angry woman and the mortified dragon.

"Get out of the way, girl! I said move!"

"No." Ahi said cringing in case Mrs. Johannes struck her again. But, surprisingly, she did no such thing. Instead, she just said, in a barely audible tone:

"Get out."

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me. I said GET OUT!" Mrs. Johannes yelled, startling the two on the floor. Without hesitating, Ahi grabbed the stunned Lightnose and ran for the door, Mrs. Johannes's angry shrieks still ringing in her ears. Where could she go? Not back. Lightnose shuddered and moaned in her arms; the hit in the chest was obviously taking its toll on him. She had to find help fast.

Suddenly, an idea entered her head. _Go to Kai._ Was that what the thing in the mirror was trying to warn her about? Either way, going to Kai seemed like the best thing to do now. She knew a lot about dragons, maybe she could help Lightnose.

_Knock knock knock._

Kai sat up with a yawn. What was that? A customer wouldn't be coming in at this hour. Deciding to go find out, she pulled on an overcoat and walked down the stairs. Upon opening the door, she was met with a shock. There stood a battered Ahi, and cradled in her arms was a young dragon, mostly blackish- purple except for a silver spot on his nose.

"So, I take it this is why you wanted to know about baby dragons, huh?"

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Quite a turn of events, huh? Please Review 


	12. Chapter 12: A Place to Call Home

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Sorry, I thought I had to change the rating, this being my first story and all, wasn't sure about what to do about the, uh, stuff in the last chapter –cough, cough-. Today is weeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrdd, my schedule's messed up cause they decided to moved a class earlier for whatever reason, and the one of the back parts of my house is a construction zone. That is the story of my life. Well, since I can't think of anything else to ramble about, enjoy the chapter:)

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Chapter 12: A place to call home

"I always knew that woman was cruel, but this goes beyond all measures of the word." Kai muttered as she fixed a sling for Ahi's arm.

"How's he doing?" Ahi asked nervously, gesturing to Lightnose, who was curled up on a chair nearby.

"Just a couple bruised ribs, nothing I couldn't fix. Your arm is another matter. I'm afraid the bone has been shattered, literally."

"Oh, so you can't help me… or fix my arm?"

"There is a way, but you won't exactly have your arm. It's what I had to do when I lost my arm." Kai said, pulling up her sleeve, exposing a black, scaly arm. Ahi's eyes literally bugged out of her head in shock.

"Wha-what is that?" Ahi asked.

"A replacement arm. I lost mine a while back, so I made myself a new one. I was thinking, since it's a piece of cake for me to do, maybe I could give you one. If you want to, that is. The bone is already beyond repair, even by my abilities."

"Could I get one of those?"

"Possibly, but wait a little while. Your arm's already very sore, so give it a couple days."

The conversation was briefly interrupted when Lightnose found a mouse under the chair and was trying to catch it in his paw, but it was putting up quite a fight. Kai put her hand in and gently cupped the mouse in her armored hand. When Lightnose came to look, she pointed to it and said 'mouse'. When he repeated the word properly, she rewarded him by letting him touch the mouse, and then she promptly let it go.

"Chair." She said, gesturing to what he was perched on.

"Ch-chair?"

"Good job!" she congratulated. Ahi watched with wonder as Kai taught Lightnose the names of the different things in the room. A twinge of regret filled her as she watched this; the only things that she had taught him were words like 'stay' and 'quiet'. Never anything that you saw in a room, just words.

She was brought back to earth by Kai's next question.

"So, do you plan on going anywhere?"

"No. Guess not."

"Say, how about you stay here with me? Don't worry, he's welcome."

Ahi looked over at Lightnose, who was dozing off in the chair. Then she looked back and said.

"Sure, why not?"

* * *

Aww, cute, huh? Kinda reminds me of the play-school sessions I used to put my little brother through, only mine were less straight-foward, and I've got an analogies habit when I try to explain something(Otherwise meaning, I'll compare one thing to so many different things that the student evetually gets frustrated and walks off). And my mom wonders why I don't want to be a teacher... I think I'd probably bore the kids to death with my talking. (I also don't like getting up in front of people. 'But mo-om, I don't wanna be in forensics...') Talk to you later! 


	13. Chapter 13: ' Anyone home'

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. The. Weirdest. Play. In. The. World. Romeo and Juliet.

Cut to me and Lightnose, watching the 70's version

Me: Why doesn't Juliet just run away or something?! What is the big deal with Romeo?! You can't change loves that quickly!! Geez, this is so confusing!

Lightnose: What are they doing? Why is he throwing himself on the floor and acting like a three-year-old?

Me: Dunno. Man, he is such a hopeless romantic, it's sad…

Yes, my English class is reading Romeo and Juliet. Confusing, fast, and some of the characters are very dramatic. To the point were you want to yell, "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!!!"

Anyhow, enjoy the story. :)

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Chapter 13: 'Anyone home?'

"Alright, let's go in again." Jane said.

"Right, but what if…?"

"No what ifs. We're going to get you back into your cave and that's that!"

"I'm not scared of the cave!"

"Then why won't you stay in it for one night?"

"Because of the..."

"Not that again. It was probably just a nightmare. You can't stay scared forever."

"I know."

"Then let's go."

"Now?"

"Yes, now!"

"But it's…"

"Don't tell me you've developed a fear of the dark as well!"

"No!"

"Then what are you afraid of?"

"Nothing!"

"Then let's go!" Jane argued. Dragon grudgingly let her on his back, not because he wanted to go back to the cave, but because she had pretty much backed him into a corner. He took off, flew in a couple of upward spirals to reach a high enough altitude, and set off for his cave.

"See, Dragon. Nothing to worry about." Jane said as they entered the empty cave. Dragon looked around at the walls, corners, and even the ceilings to be safe. Even the shadows seemed menacing. There was nothing in any spot in the cave, no matter how much he looked.

While he was scanning the premises, Jane happened to catch something written on the cave wall.

_Kouin of hensen_

_Jun hidoi to rui_

_Jun kaen to mizu_

_Jun sendo to jinsei_

_Jun fuzen to yoshi_

_Jun ko to hatsu_

_Jun bishou to issei_

_Jun sou to chiyu_

_And hensen the kijutsu of the doragon gods _

"Was this here before?" Jane asked, turning to her scaly companion. Dragon, however, wasn't listening. His eyes where focused on a spot across the room, his mouth hanging open in disbelief. Jane, following his gaze, realized that the small pile of dragon teeth, the only objects that were in the cave when Dragon took it for his own, was gone. There was nothing else missing, just those teeth, but Jane knew the severity of the situation. Dragon teeth, no matter how old they were, could be used as powerful weapons. In the wrong hands, they could be dangerous objects.

Dragon was too angry over the loss one of the only things he had of other dragons to care about the writing on the wall that Jane had mentioned. Sure, he knew it hadn't been there before, but it wasn't like it was readable. The only words that they could actually understand were to, the, and, and of. The rest seemed to be gibberish, because it sure wasn't in dragon runes, or in English. Jane put up the idea that it might be a code, or another language, but he wasn't really listening.

"Dragon, this could be some kind of a threat for all we know!" Jane cried, trying to bring him back to earth.

"Uh, huh, sure, I know." Dragon replied in a testy tone, and Jane knew he was in no mood to answer back. Dragon continued to stare angrily at the spot were the relics had been, unable to pull it in. He must have only been out of the cave for about a day, how did _he_ get several heavy dragon teeth out of his cave?

_Cause he's a monster. _Dragon thought as he remembered the terrifying face that a swam up from the darkness, like something that had just crawled out of the underworld. He couldn't even figure out how the ground had moved, but on that night, he was one hundred percent sure it had. No matter how many times Jane told him that it was probably a very terrifying nightmare, and he would never believe her. What had happened in his cave was too real to be a nightmare.

It wasn't until he returned to the cave after taking Jane back to the castle that he took a good look at it. It was definitely written the human way, but not the language. The words had a curviness to the strokes, like the writer was trying to put more than words into the writing. Dragon tried to pronounce the words as best he could, but he got nowhere. He turned away in a frustrated defeat, then caught something out of the corner of his eye. He couldn't have been sure, but he thought he saw what looked like a golden shadow, gesturing for him to come back. Turning around, he saw nothing but the carved words. Maybe it wanted him to try again? After a couple more fruitless attempts, he was ready to give up again, when a small voice spoke up in the back of his mind. _Try again._ This time, warmth filled the cave, and Dragon felt slightly drained, like had flown to the castle and back eight times in a row. Figuring he was just tired, he lay down and dropped off right there, next to the writing on the wall.

Meanwhile, in a mountain far away, so close to the sky that the two almost touched, a golden shadow watched from a mirror. He had seen everything that had occurred in the cave two nights hence. Taking pity on Dragon, he had given him a weapon to keep Ankoku and Itami away. Now all he had to do was use it wisely.

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Pretty cool, huh? Oh, the words in that stanza are partually in Japanese(thank you, online dictionary!)

I hope you liked this story so far. To let me know what you think, press that little blue button down there and review, please!


	14. Chapter 14: The Shopkeeper's Assistant

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Well, today turned out to be all…happy.

I nearly lost circulation in my foot cause I happened to put a piece of that foot-wrapping stuff on too tight and I couldn't walk for a while.

I got bombarded with quizzes and junk at school (curse you long weekends that draw me into a false sense of security! Curse yoooouuu!!!)

-Cough, Cough- Erm, anyway, enjoy the new chapter:)

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Chapter 14: The Shopkeepers Assistant 

Ahi drummed her fingers on the table. Even though Kai was nice enough to give her and Lightnose a home, but business wasn't exactly booming, there was the occasional customer, but otherwise, Ahi rarely saw anything else of the outside world. Today was no different, until she saw them again. It was around midmorning when they came in. When she first heard the bell, she thought it was someone coming in to get tarot cards.

"You probably want the tarot cards, right? I'll get 'em."

"No, we weren't thinking of getting tarot cards, but getting our fortunes told does sound fun. You do that?"

_That voice. I know that voice. _Ahi thought as she turned around, and was met with a shock. Standing just behind the counter was Julian, Dan, and Tigre! Confronted with the slight shattering of her reality, Ahi's brain abruptly shut off and she was left to babble like an idiot.

"I- you- why are- here…" she blathered, letting her arm fall limply against her side.

"I see you guys already know each other."

Ahi whirled around to see Kai standing in the door.

"Kai, who's- why are they…"

"They're friends of mine. I guess you happened to bump into them?"

"You can say that again." Tigre quipped as Dan put a hand over his mouth and pulled his bright red hat over his eyes "Mmph!"

"Anyway…Didn't know you and Kai knew each other." Dan said over Tigre's muffled protests.

"I had to go for advice a couple times." Ahi started, but was cut of by Lightnose entering the room. Ahi held her breath as the little dragon walked over to Tigre. At first she thought he was going to say something, but then he reached down, picked him up, and said…

"Oh, he's so cute! Is he a new one?"

While Ahi's jaw had just about hit the ground, Kai broke the awkward silence with an even more awkward answer.

"He's hers. Just hatched."

"Cool, so what's his name?" Dan asked, completely ignoring or completely missing the shell-shocked look on Ahi's face.

"Lightnose! Lightnose!" The little dragon chirped happily, enjoying the outflow of attention, even if it was from complete strangers.

"Talks pretty well for having just hatched." Julian commented.

"Let's talk in the back. Ahi, can you watch the store for me?" Kai said, patting Ahi's shoulder, and then sweeping the others into the back room. Ahi stood there for a moment, completely dumbfounded by this bizarre reunion that took place right under her nose. Lightnose, bemused by his friend's lapse of response, nudged her hand in an effort to bring her back to earth.

"Ever' thing……Okay?" he asked, messing up some of the words.

"Yeah, everything's just fine." Ahi said, slowly catching back up to reality.

Meanwhile, in the other room, a serious discussion was taking place.

"So, she really is the one?"

"You saw for yourself."

Dan grumbled and rolled his eyes.

"Stop talking in riddles, Kai and just answer."

"You mean you didn't see?"

"I saw, but just because she happens to be very close to a dragon doesn't mean that she is one of them. There's a girl up at the castle, training to be a knight, I hear, that also happens to be good friends with a dragon that lives in the area. Yet, she isn't a half-blood and hasn't displayed any interesting powers or abilities."

"Ah, yes, her. Jane Turnkey, right?"

"Yeah, that's her." Julian said, failing to see the point behind Kai's interest.

"What's so important about her, Kai? She's purely human, no animal blood." Dan asked.

"Anyone who is close to a dragon, especially one that isn't in that place, deservs interest."

"So, do you want us to keep an eye on them? I could go for another under cover mission." Tigre grinned, rubbing his hands together thoughtfully.

"No, we don't need to. They're important, just not right now. For now, let's focus on this."

"Okay, whatever you say, Kai." said the three half-bloods as they walked out.

Kai was silent for about a moment, then she caught sight of the mirror. A thought entered her head as she walked over and made a symbol on the glass. Almost immediately, Shadow appeared on the glass.

_Yes?_

"Hey, how're things going?"

_Pretty good. So, why'd you call? Is there a problem?_

"No, no, nothing like that. I just wanted to ask you something."

_Ask._

"You know the time when all the dragons and magical creatures were brought into the OverWorld?"

_Yes. What about it?_

"Was there an incident where you may have missed one?"

_Actually, there was one. It was one of the last trips. We had a dragon who came to the ones in charge saying that she had left her chick behind._

"So, what happened?"

_We went back to the cave, but we couldn't find any trace of said chick. We must have searched that cave from top to bottom. Couldn't find a thing._

"Oh."

_Why so interested?_

"Ah, no reason. Just curious."

_You remember I'll be coming back soon. All the vessels will._

"Even L and Kouyuu?"

_Not too sure. They might, they might not. You never know with those two._

"Good point. I have to go now. See you soon."

_Bye. _Shadow said as his image faded and the mirror became a mirror once more.

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So, what'd u think huhhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuh????? (Sry, just a little hyper) Please review. 


	15. Chapter 15: The Darkest of the Gods

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

This has been a loooonnngg week. Anyone else happy it's Saturday?

I've been trying to get more story-writing done, but school's been a real pain (tests, quizzes, and projects, stuff like that…the usual drag). Bleah TT. Anyway, enjoy the new chapter! (sorry its so short, but when I was writing it, it just didn't feel like that long a chapter) :)

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Chapter 15: The Darkest of the Gods

While the others were going down the path of time, one stood out on a ledge on the other side of Dragon's mountain. Who knew that L would get wind of this? _Who knew?_ And that meddlesome fool left a protecting spell in the dragon's cave, on top of it all! Now he could no longer go near Dragon or do anything from the cave. Blast it all!

But, but, there was one bit of news that intrigued him above all. In the local pub down in the village, there was talk about the waitress girl, who had run away. Rumor has it, she and her boss got into a fight over something, something not human. The boss in question, Mrs. Johannes, was babbling about a lizard. Could it be…?

Itami, a huge black dragon with red eyes, just like his master, stayed by his side like a weird rendition of a pet dog. Seeming to sense his master's mix of outrage and intrigue, he wanted to ask what was on his mind, but he remained quiet. It wouldn't be proper to interrupt him while he was thinking. He never liked when Itami asked him things while he was thinking about things, and judging by the look in his eyes, it was a deep one. While this was going on, a young sparrow landed on a tree branch above their heads, and began to twitter loudly. At first, the teen and dragon seemed to ignore it, but within seconds, it went from a little annoying to overpowering. Raising his hand, the teen shot a streak of darkness into the air. It hit the bird full force, silencing it forever. As the bird fell, a strange black light flowed off of it, like it was bleeding darkness. The raven-haired teen put out his hand, the darkness flowed into it, and was absorbed into his skin

Well, the black-haired, red-eyed, older teen thought as he rose from the shadows, and began to make the long trek down and around the mountain; there was a way to know for sure what happened that night. All he would have to do was pay a small visit to Mrs. Johannes.

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So, how was my incredibly short chapter? Please Review!


	16. Chapter 16: The Spell and The Spark

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Not really doing much of interest. One really cool thing that is definitely not new (I've been reading it for several months now) is, dun dun dun, ZOMBIE POWDER!!! Here's a link if anyone's interested Manga (search Zombie powder) (Gamma is sooo awesome!!!!) Enjoy the story:)

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Chapter 16: The spell and the spark 

Dragon opened his eyes blearily as the early morning sunshine shown into his cave. He rubbed sleep from his eyes, and happened to look up and notice the words that had been carved into the wall, now turned to a pure white. Gazing at the words thoughtfully, he turned and went to the entrance of the cave, and took off, headed for the castle. Last night was such a blur. What happened beyond the point where he took Jane back to the castle and returned to his cave was, well, blank. Ah, no time to worry about that now. He had promised to show Jane a small cove he had found a while back.

Lightnose opened his eyes and stretched. He was just about to go back to sleep, when he caught a tasty smell on the air. Someone was cooking something downstairs! His stomach grumbled loudly as he nudged the door open and wandered downstairs. When he was about two thirds of the way down the stairs, he caught sight of Kai, Ahi, Tigre, and Dan waiting around the table. Julian was standing at the over near the fireplace, trying to keep the fire going.

"Urgh! Tigre, give me a hand here, will you?"

"One fireball, coming right up!" Tigre crooned, holding out his right hand. At first, it looked like nothing was happening. Then Ahi let out a barely audible gasp as a ball of fire began to form in his palm. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the ball of fire spiraling towards the logs in the fireplace, which lit up instantly and began to burn like they had been lit for hours. Ahi watched, amazed, as Tigre backed away from the now-roaring fire with a satisfied expression on his face. Her eyes wandered to the different appendages that had only been revealed a short time ago. Tigre's flaming red hair also sported a pair of tiger ears, and he also had a tail. Dan's teeth were sharp and pointed, like a shark's. To top it off, he had a fin protruding from his back. Kai was probably the one that had the toughest time finding a good disguise, considering she had a pair of horns on her head, a small pair of reptilian wings, and her other arm, too, sported a reptilian look.

Julian was the only one out of the four that had the most subtle differences. He always wore a shawl-like garment, which hid a small pair of bird-like wings. Despite their size, they could be used to kick up a mighty wind. Julian was descended from a line of Scandinavian storm-bringers (beings that could control elements of the storms and typhoons), but was the first of his line to have an interest in using his powers for things other than battle.

"Any more, Tigre, and you would have burnt the whole place down." Julian remarked.

"I wouldn't be complaining if I were you, lightning boy." Tigre retorted. "You can't even keep a fire going, much less get one started."

"At least I've got a good amount of control over my elemental power, unlike you."

"At least mine comes in handy more."

"It doesn't matter how handy it is, if you can't control it, you're sunk."

"At least being able to use it more gives me more chances to practice on how to control it."

"That's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean, shock head?"

While this argument raged on, Ahi chose this moment to question Kai.

"What does 'elemental power' mean?"

"Oh, that? It's, complicated… Elemental power is the ability to control certain parts of nature. You know, fire, water, earth, wind, lightening, darkness, light, death, and there's one more…what was it again?"

"Energy?" Dan mumbled, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, right. That one's a more complex one. The three main categories are spiritual, mental, and physical. The amazing thing about energy is that there's always more you can do with it. One of the drawbacks of the other eight is that there's a counter to it, or a weakness. Energy's one drawback is that it eventually runs low and you have to take time to charge back up again. If energy completely runs out, the thing it's being funneled into will crash, or, if it's living, it will die."

"How can you get elemental power?"

Kai looked at her for a moment before responding.

"There aren't many ways to 'get' elemental powers. You have to either have them already, or someone who has it must give part of theirs to you. There is also the instance that you have it, but you just haven't unlocked it yet." Kai stopped to take a look at the now-raging argument across the table. Ahi chose this moment to bombard Kai with another couple questions.

"How do you know if you have that? How do you get it from somebody else?"

"You don't know. Well, not really. One way you can find out is if you've done anything you can't explain; maybe when you were scared or angry?"

"Actually, something kind of funny happened to me once. I was getting yelled at by Mrs. Johannes, over some dishes, I think, she had just given me too many, and she was slapping me, hard, over the head. I wished right then and there that all the dishes were gone. Then she happened to look over at the dishes, and they where gone, turned to dust. Literally. I never thought she'd stop yelling."

"I see. Anything else?"

"Just one other time. I was just walking down the road. This guy came up out of nowhere, and pulled me into the alley. He pushed me down and was about to punch me. Just as his fist was coming down, I reached up and grabbed it, and squeezed it really hard. He started yelling, and then I realized I actually broke his hand. I didn't mean to, it just sort of, happened."

_Just as I thought. _Kai lapsed into silence, while Ahi tried to break up the argument across the table.

_Knock, knock._

"Darn girl, back again." Mrs. Johannes grumbled as she stumbled to the door in the semi-light. Ordinarily, she wouldn't be up at this hour, but she was not turning away a possibly good profit. As she pulled open the door, the person on the doorstop was neither Ahi, nor a paying customer.

"Who're you?"

" My name is… Ankoku. I need to talk to you."

"What is it? What's with the funny name? You from around here? I don't take foreigners."

Ankoku impatiently rolled his red eyes. This might be tougher than he thought, and he left Itami alone on the mountain. He'd have to speed things up.

"I wanted to ask you something, ma'am?"

Mrs. Johannes was now a little flattered by this term, and allowed him in.

"Oh, how about a drink?" Mrs. Johannes suggested, now noticing a bottle on the counter.

"Sure, why not?" Ankoku said with a small grin.

A couple minutes later, he had her like putty in his hands.

"So, want me ta give ya a room now?" she slurred, somewhere after her fourth shot, completely overlooking the fact that though Ankoku's glass had been emptied once more, but he didn't seem the least bit drunk.

"How about another drink?" Ankoku suggested, gesturing to the once-again full glasses. Several glasses later, Mrs. Johannes was extremely tipsy, and Ankoku decided to make his move.

"So, I heard about your assistant. Somebody make off with her or did she leave on her own?"

"No, she left on her own th' darned ungrateful thing! She left with that lizard!"

"A lizard? What kind of a lizard?"

"A horrible lookin' thing with horns, wings, and a long whip-like tail. Thing somehow got inter the house and I tried to beat it out. The girl got in the way and left with it, the ungrateful wretch!"

Ankoku could barely conceal a grin. This may be what he was suspecting after all. If he could just worm out some more information…

"Do you know where they went?" he asked, maybe a little too pointedly. Mrs. Johannes gave him a suspicious look before continuing.

"Not quite sure, but it was up the road, somewhere. "

Ankoku's grin began to fade a little, not the most reliable. There might be a hundred places in this village alone that a vessel and a young dragon might hide.

"Oh, look at the sun. I have to go; left a friend waiting."

Mrs. Johannes blinked and let Ankoku out the door.

"Weird man…" she muttered as she closed the door behind him. Unbeknownst to her, Ankoku vanished into the shadows with a sly grin spreading on his face. She had proved to be more useful than he thought. Now, the only thing he could do was wait, and watch. If he was lucky, something good would come up. Until then, he'd better get back to Itami. Who knows what he may do if left alone any longer.

* * *

Don't worry, there will be longer chapters, they just aren't up yet. Please Review! 


	17. Chapter 17:A Part of Me

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Nothing much has been going on, unless you count me being buried in more projects than I know what to do with. This is going to be a long week… Anyhow, enjoy the chapter. :)

Lightnose: Something really big happens in this one!

Me (steps on his foot) You don't give spoilers to the readers, Lightnose! Don't give away the big part!

Lightnose: I wasn't about to!(massages his stamped foot) What kind of a shoe _is _that? A two-ton brick with a hole in it?

* * *

Chapter 17: A Part of Me 

_Man, is this rough _Ahi thought as she gently rewrapped her arm. It had been in a cast for weeks, but it still didn't look (or feel) like it was getting any better. Kai had promised Ahi that she would give her a new arm soon, but when she insisted on knowing exactly when, Kai had only said 'soon', and left it at that. While she was helping to run the store, she also had to occasionally treat her arm to keep it from getting worse or infected.

A loud snore from across the room made her jump. She turned around to see Lightnose, now the size of a grown black lab, sleeping contently on her bed.

_I've really got to get him to break that habit_ she thought as she looked at the minimal amount of space left on the bed.

_I'll say._

"Huh, who's- oh. Hi." Ahi said, turning around again and catching sight of the blurry shape in the mirror. It could have just been a trick of the light, but the shape actually looked a little clearer.

_You've certainly been through a lot since I saw you last. He's grown quite a bit, but it will take him a while to reach his full size._

"How long?"

_Couple years, perhaps._

Oh, okay. Wait, who are you?"

The image flinched and waited a couple seconds before responding.

_A friend. That's all you need to know for now. Heal, and I might see you again soon. _The image said as it vanished. Ahi stared at the mirror for a couple seconds as she took in the fact that she had just been casually talking to something that she only had seen twice. It didn't even seem human for that matter. As she gently moved the half-asleep Lightnose to the floor, an unseen shadow from outside the door gave an affirming nod, and then slipped stealthily down the hallway.

The next morning, Ahi and Lightnose came down the stairs to find Kai waiting for them.

"Take a seat." She said cheerfully. Ahi hesitantly sat down. Lightnose took the patch of the floor next to her.

"I've got some good news for you." Kai started, still partially smiling. "I'm ready to give you the new arm. But, I'm also slightly intrigued by the things you told me, so, I want to see if you can do it on command."

Ahi raised an eyebrow as Kai placed a small flower pot on the table.

"See if you can make it grow."

"Wait, what? How do I-?"

"Let me get you started." Kai replied, taking her left hand and placing it over the pot. "Now close your eyes, and concentrate on fueling the plant with energy. Imagine it growing in your mind."

It was tough, and at first, nothing happened. Then, Ahi felt a strange power welling up inside her. It grew and grew and grew until it was all funneled into the plant on the table. She at first only managed to make a small sprout, but with Kai's guidance, she put in enough energy to grow a small flower.

"Congra- Congratu- Congaru- wait, I know this- Con- Good job!" Lightnose stammered, flustered at not being able to get the first word right.

"Thanks." Ahi replied, scratching the top of his head.

"Not bad." Kai said, "But defiantly room for improvement. How about we try something else." She suggested, and put a cup of water in front of her.

"What're you supposed to do with that?" Lightnose asked.

"I was just getting to that. I want you to move the water anyway you like."

Ahi put her left hand over the cup, and visualized the water rising. A collective gasp from Lightnose and a satisfied sigh from Kai told her that she must had been doing something right. She cautiously opened an eye to see the water rising and curling in the air. There was an almost weird silver-colored glow surrounding her hand and joining to the water, pulling it out of the cup. As soon as it began to touch her hand, she realized it was burning hot. Panicking, she broke the connection by flinging her hand, sending all of the water onto Lightnose, who jumped as he received the hot shower.

"One word to the wise, avoid letting energy-influenced liquids touch you. Because they have energy flowing through them, their temperature rises."

"Oh, okay." Was all Ahi could say.

"Here, how about this?" And a rock ended up on the table. A couple hours later, and a dozen more exercises later, Ahi felt slightly tired and Lightnose wasn't looking much better. Kai was watching both of them intently as they did each task. After another hour, Kai said "Okay, that's enough."

By this time Lightnose looked like he was ready to go back to bed, and Ahi herself looked slightly drained.

"Both of you probably feel tired, right? Don't worry, that usually comes out of expending energy. Usually, if the expending is done liberally, lost energy can be recovered by food, or by sleep. See why I didn't give you breakfast right away? It would have wasted energy, and food. Speaking of breakfast, here." With her last sentence, Kai forked over some scrambled eggs and bacon for Ahi and tossed Lightnose a couple of the assorted usual, which he dug into like there was no tomorrow. Ahi looked over at the dragon and asked Kai one last question.

"If I was the one doing all of the energy-expending, why is he tired too?"

"Now, that is a good question. It's also a very hard one to answer. In the mood for a story?"

"Sure, why not?"

You hear the one about the dragon guardians?"

"Sounds familiar, but I don't think I've heard the actual story."

"Then I guess I should start at the beginning. Many, many years ago, the forces of nature were conscious things, but with no real form or shape. These forces moved freely about the world, but while they were in that form, no life came to be. After a while, they manifested into the form of dragons, and were given names. All in all, there were seven. Tsuchi, the dragon guardian of earth, Umi, the dragon guardian of water, Unindo, the guardian of air, Kasai, the guardian of fire, Rampu, the guardian of light, Kurigari, the guardian of darkness, Sendo, the guardian of death and the dead, and, last but not least Reki, the guardian of spirits. Once there were manifested, they could let the elements have a free energy flow, but no real consciousness or thought lingered in them like it did when they and the guardians were one. While the guardians kept balance in the world, life began to flourish and grow. More time passed, and things changed. Kurigari began to distance himself from the other guardians, and Reki himself pulled away, little by little. Kasai and Umi got into arguments over which was better, fire or water, and all the others could do was to try and do their best to keep what remained of the group together. Then, suddenly, Rampu left. Vanished without a trace. Rumors went around that he eventually met the same fate as the others."

"What happened to them?" Ahi asked, though in her heart, she had a feeling that she knew already.

"Well, it was about the time humans came to be. And you know how people reacted to ordinary dragons. These super-powered dragons were beyond what they could stand, and a spell caster made it his life's work to get rid of them for good. Fortunately, he realized that he couldn't kill them, for it would invoke the end our world, because the forces would literally collapse and dwindle away to nothing. So he used a different spell, one that wouldn't kill them, but put them into a permanent spirit state. The only way they could be fully revived was if they were bonded with two beings, a dragon and a half-blood."

"What's a half-blood?"

"It's someone that is partially human, but shares the blood of an animal or being. Anyway, you pretty much can figure out the rest. The mage sealed them all away and now no one knows where they are."

"How do you know if you're a half-blood?"

"You saw yourself. A half-blood can be distinguished by parts, or markings on his or her body. They also may have animal- like characteristics or habits. "

Ahi subconsciously touched the streaks of scales on her face. Was that the answer? Was she a half-blood? Was that why she was different?

"Am I, one of you?"

"Technically yes, and slightly no."

Ahi cocked her head and gave Kai a questioning look.

"I think you've heard enough for now. There will be more time for answers later. Right now, go on outside, and take him with you. Use the back exit, and head for the areas near the waterfront. When you come back later, we will begin to give you your new arm."

Ahi obeyed with enthusiasm, considering she hadn't been outside in weeks. Grabbing a surprised Lightnose, she ran out the back door, closing it with a slam. Kai, as soon as she was sure that they were gone, leaned back in her chair, and muttered:

"Got dangerously close there. I wonder what she would do if she knew? Still, though, can't keep it from her forever…" Kai murmured to herself as she leaned back in the chair

Ahi ran through the back alleys relieved to be out in the crisp, cool, autumn air. Lightnose, meanwhile, had been silenced by this experience. He'd hardly ever been outside, the only other time he had, he was barely aware of it, but now the world seemed so, _big_. And bright. And noisy. There was sound and color coming from every direction. Ahi, meanwhile, was working her way down to the river, when she realized that she'd have to go by a crowded side store, and Lightnose wouldn't stay still!

She hesitated, and then, feeling an oncoming wave of power, took a step forward, and somehow ended up on the roof of the building across the road. Ahi looked around in shock, and Lightnose immediately stopped moving out of surprise. Then it hit her. She had just managed to _jump_ from the sidewalk a door or two down to a two level building!

"What was that?" Lightnose cried, looking up at her with wide eyes.

"Don't know, but maybe I can do it again. Give me a second."

Lightnose stayed respectively quiet, pulled along by Ahi as she looked to see if anyone had seen. Thankfully, they were either too preoccupied or she was too fast for them to notice. Looking from her perch to the building beyond, she concentrated until she felt the feeling of power running through her body again. Then she took a running leap, and this time managed to distinguish the time spent in the air from landing. It was a wonderful feeling. Was this what Kai wanted her to do? Train herself physically as well as mentally? Either way, this was the part of the training that Ahi enjoyed. The moments of flight, though brief, were almost exhilarating. And she moved so fast that no one saw a thing. Poor Lightnose, however, didn't really enjoy it much, considering he would always get dragged along for the ride. He was very relieved when they reached the river. Ahi noticed how lush the vegetation was and had to marvel at it. As far back as she could remember, she had been in the city, and would rarely ever venture beyond her boundaries, only on the night she found Lightnose's egg. Lightnose was intrigued by just about everything around him, from the flowers to the fish. Ahi, meanwhile, tried jumping from tree to tree in an attempt to get the hang of her newfound talent. Hanging upside-down from a tree limb, Ahi laughed as Lightnose attempted to get a closer look at the strange animals swimming around in the water. When he finally seemed to have a good grip on one, it leapt up, splashed water in his face, and dove back into the water.

"Lightnose, fish. Fish, Lightnose." Ahi said, landing with a laugh.

"Fish?" Lightnose asked gesturing to the creature in the water.

"Yep. This here is a river." She replied, indicating the cutting run of water at their feet.

"River?"

"Right. Good job."

Meanwhile, about a couple miles up Jane and Dragon were patrolling from the skies.

"So, where is this cove?" Jane asked.

"Around here, somewhere."

"Don't tell me you forgot where it is."

"I didn't. I only visited it a couple days ago."

"And you forgot."

Dragon gave an affronted harrumph. Then he looked down, and said "We're here."

He landed down in a small inlet, near the shoreline, and Jane found herself looking at pristine waters. They were so clear that you could even see the fish as they swam by. Even the plants around them were lush and full of life.

"It's so beautiful!" Jane cried.

"I told you I didn't forget! So, you like it?"

"Of course! How did you find this place?"

"I sort of followed a fish downstream… I mean, I was just flying along when…"

Jane suppressed a laugh as Dragon gave her a look that said 'I don't want to talk about it'. Suddenly, he straightened up.

"Hear that?" he asked.

"Hear what?" Jane said, jumping up.

"Over there. Hear that?" Dragon replied, indicating a section of the brush.

Jane walked over and peered between the leaves.

"I don't see anything. Are you sure you heard it over here?"

"Pretty sure. Try the bushes to your left." Dragon said, a sly smile working its way over his face. As Jane began to move to the bushes closer to him, he snaked his tail through the foliage. As Jane got closer and closer to his camouflaged tail, he yanked it out of the plants. Jane fell backwards with a shriek, and Dragon started laughing so hard his sides hurt.

"Your face! The look on your face!" he gasped through peals of laughter.

"Ha, ha, very funny." Jane grumbled as she pulled herself up. This did nothing to stop Dragon, as he continued to roar with laughter. Jane quietly walked over to the riverbank. As she looked into the water, something slid out from under her feet, and she fell into the river. As Jane tried to come back up, the current suddenly grew swift, pulling her straight downstream. Jane tried to call Dragon for help, but the water swirled around what little she could keep above water, making any kind of speech whatsoever. All she could do was thrash in the current and hope someone would see her.

Ahi was having a grand old time up in the trees. Even though she was deprived of her right arm, she still managed to maneuver like a panther through the limbs. The branches were high and favorable positioned, making for some easy training. Lightnose, meanwhile, followed from the ground, taking short intervals of flight himself.

Just as Ahi landed on another limb, she heard a disruption in the river flow. Looking down, she caught sight of a girl in the river. It looked like she had fallen in, somehow, and was getting swept downstream by the current. Now, Ahi never saw this girl before, but it was obvious that she wasn't doing the backstroke. She needed help, badly. Without even thinking twice, climbed quickly out of the tree and ran for the riverbank. Unfortunately, the water was moving faster than she was, and soon, she began to fall short.

_Can't stop. Gotta keep going. GOTTA. KEEP. GOING._ The same power coursed through Ahi's body as the thought rang through her mind, and she shot ahead. Seeing an advantage in a large rock jutting out on the bank, Ahi climbed up it, and caught the girl's arm. By this time, Lightnose had caught up, and put his energy into making up for the absence of Ahi's right arm. Together, they both pulled the waterlogged Jane from the river. Even though Ahi thought that the incident lasted a couple minutes, it had actually been a couple _seconds_. In other words, she had moved at the speed of what was unheard of then!

Jane was in a slight daze for a couple minutes. One second she was floundering around in the river, and the next she was being dragged out of river, by something with a mouthful of sharp teeth!

"Hey, are you alright?" asked a voice from somewhere over her head. Then something scaly nudged her hand. _Scaly?_

"No, no…go over _there_… not here…_there_…"

"Aww, I never get to have any fun…"

"Move! Are you okay?"

Jane opened her eyes to see someone standing over her.

"Who are you?"

"Uh, name's Ahidaha."

"Did you rescue me?"

"Erm, yes, sort of…"

"Where's your friend?"

"Huh, what friend? I didn't bring a friend!"

"You don't have to be like that, I was just- What is that on your face?" Jane asked, catching a flash of silver on the other girl's face.

"Oh, that- it's nothing- I mean- there's nothing on my- " Ahi stammered as Jane reached up and brushed the hair out of her face, only to draw back with a gasp.

"I tried to tell you." Ahi said sadly, wishing that she had just dragged her out of the river and walked off.

"How did you get scales _on your face_?" Jane asked, putting emphasis on the last three words.

"Dunno, they've been there for as long as I can remember."

"Oh, so, who was your friend?"

"That would be me." Lightnose called, popping out from behind a bush. Jane sat there, mouth open, gaping at the silver-nosed dragon, which instantly made to hide behind the nearest bush.

"Don't bother, she already saw."

"Oh, right. Name's Lightnose, by the way." The black dragon said cheerfully, trying to cover up the lack of conversation. Since no one replied, he pulled off, losing interest, and moving toward the river once more.

"Don't fall in." Ahi called after him. Lightnose, acknowledged the call with a shake of his head. Jane, now determined to keep from staring at the abnormalities on Ahi's face, moved to the next most eye-grabbing thing on her person, the casted arm.

"How did you come to possess that?"

"Nothing, just an accident." Ahi said shortly, even though, in her heart, she knew it was no accident. Suddenly, a vision flashed into her head; _there was a dark shadow descending on the group, coming from something huge in the sky. _Ahi blinked, and the vision evaporated into the present.

"Are you alright?" Jane was asking.

"Oh, me? Yeah, fine. Everything's fine."

The awkward conversation was soon ended as a shadow darkened the sky and blocked out the sun. Ahi gasped lightly and tried to move away, but the shadow came down with a tremendous boom.

Ahi, eyes wide, looked up into the face of Dragon as he lighted down, and instantly turned to Jane.

"Are you alright?" He asked, "I heard a splash, but I didn't notice you had fallen in until I…" Dragon trailed off as he caught sight of the scale-faced girl, leaning against a tree.

"Hi." She said, seemly okay with the fire-breathing lizard before her that could easily roast her with one breath. Jane, however, sighed and said:

"Do we ever have a surprise for you…"

"You know, if I didn't know better, I would have said you have some dragon blood in you." Dragon remarked. Ahi wasn't sure if this was a complement or an insult, so she just shrugged. Dragon was nice and all, but it was tough to tell when he was being sarcastic, or if he was sincere. As for learning that there was more of his kind, Dragon took it all reasonably well, though on the inside he was a little mixed up. More of his kind. It was something he had been searching for for three hundred years. But, there was a slight bittersweet feel to it. It was nice to find another of his kind, but this one was barely knee-high to him. He had been expecting something, larger, perhaps? Either way, he was beginning to take a liking to the sliver nosed dragon. Where was he, anyway?

Ahi, seeming to read his mind, jerked her head toward the river, where a blackish colored lizard caught his eye.

Dragon looked on as Lightnose was trying a paw at fishing. He wasn't having much luck; however, considering every fish he managed to get only had to move the slightest bit in order for it to slip out of his grasp. After a couple slippery tries, he decided to drop it on the ground instead. Of course, the fish wanted to let the dark-colored, scaly monster know it didn't like to be dropped on dry land. It jumped up, and used Lightnose's head as a springboard to get back to the river. This was so hilariously funny that Dragon, Ahi, and Jane all started laughing. It was only then that Ahi realized how low the sun was getting in the sky.

"Guess it's time to go." Ahi said, pointing out the sun.

"See you!" Jane called, climbing onto Dragon.

"Oh, would you please not say anything to anyone about this? I'd kind of like it if we didn't have half the town knowing about us."

"Can do." Jane replied, and Dragon nodded in agreement.

"Bye!" Lightnose called as he followed Ahi back toward the town.

Dragon waved as he took off, carrying Jane back to the castle.

"So?" She asked, once they were a good deal up.

"So?" he replied.

"You found another dragon! This is something you have been looking for, for, well, years! Aren't you happy?"

"Jane, I am a number of things, and happy is not one of them."

Jane gave her friend a bemused look.

"I am……GREAT!!" He cried as he pulled into a steep climb, and then dropped out of the sky like a stone, landing right in the practice yard, letting Jane off. She gave him a customary good night, and went of to bed. On the way, she happened to meet Jester.

"So, how'd everything go today, lady-knight?"

"Everything is fine, perhaps better than before." Jane said, watching Dragon fly to his mountain, obviously in high spirits.

Meanwhile, Kai, Dan, Tigre, and Julian were waiting around the back of the shop. Tigre sat on the table, Dan was on the stairs, and Julian was hanging off in a corner of the room. Kai was sitting at the table. Suddenly, a loud knock echoed through the room, sending the occupants back to earth.

"They're back!"

"They are? Finally…I was getting bored."

"Everything that doesn't have to do with moving bores you, Tigre."

"Put a sock in it, sharky."

"Get a life, flame boy."

"Guys, not now."

Kai pulled open the door to reveal a windswept yet enthusiastic Ahi and a worn out Lightnose.

"Guys, you're never going to guess what I did on my walk. I…"

"Could jump, run, and climb like nothing you've ever seen?"

"How'd you figure it out?" Lightnose asked.

"There was a reason behind why I made you do all those exercises this morning. They were meant to unlock some of your abilities. These could range from physical strength, to some mental flash-forwards."

"Mental flash-forwards?"

"It's a mental energy ability. You can get warnings of danger, or just simply what will happen in the near future. In simpler terms, you have a psychic gift. As for the physical strength, it comes from the person sending energy to a particular part of your body, like your legs or arms. This allows the person to gain some superhuman abilities, depending on how much energy is put in, like faster speed, or strength, and faster reflexes. You get what I mean?"

Ahi nodded.

"Good, now, how about that arm?"

* * *

Lightnose: I told you something speacial would be happening! 

Me: Don't you think that they would have wanted to find it out for themselves?  
If you're wondering why Ahi is suddenly getting all of these weird abilities, it's because of what Kai made her do before she left (the exercises). It forced open her ability to draw energy, thus making her abilties reveal themselves faster and when she needed them, although she might not have been aware of it. Dragon now knows that there's other dragons! Unfortunatly, they're not going to meet again for a little while, but we're going to see a couple more of my characters in the meantime. (Yes, most of them are dragons. I'm obessed, remember?) Please Review:)


	18. Chapter 18: The Moonshined Arm

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

My Valentine's Day curse caught up with me again this year. All weekend I could swallow or yawn without feeling like somebody grabbed my neck and gave it a good yank. Long story short, I had a really bad sore throat and my amount of energy was entirely dependant on an Advil pillbox. For some weird reason, Valentine's Day has a bad effect on me. I also watched this really creepy video on YouTube on Monday. If anyone's interested in ghosts, and getting scared out of your wits, I'll put the link up.

Either way, it's time for me to shut up, so enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

Chapter 18: The Moonshined Arm

"I'm going to need some of your fire, Tigre." Kai said as she bent over the half-constructed arm. Ahi was peacefully out cold for this, as they had to numb the arm and literally seal it to the useless arm. Tigre obliged with a small spark. Kai used her already armored arm to press the spark to the metal, sealing up the fingers. The hand was a little tougher to work with, but eventually Kai managed to seal it up, just like the fingers. Then came the rest of the arm, which required at least a half an inch long plates of the same metal, had to be nailed together before it could be sealed (Lightnose turned away at this point) the first couple plates went in with no problem, but the one that was supposed to slide on right after her elbow plate wasn't the right thickness.

For a couple seconds, it seemed like the arm would have a big weak spot, until Julian came up with an idea.

"Here, give me one of those plates. Tigre, I'm going to need some fire." He ordered as he gently placed the two plates together.

"Be careful. That stuff is hard to mold."

"I'll do my best." Julian said as he placed both plates together, and guided Tigre's fiery spark to the sides, melting them together.

The tough stuff was when he tried to nail the two plates together without snagging the skin or letting the residue from the melted metal touch the flesh. Tigre, Dan, Lightnose, and Kai looked on nervously as he carefully screwed the two in, and, in a fluid motion, Tigre sealed the part to the arm. They continued this painstaking process until Ahi's arm was completely sealed up, but there still was a problem.

"Guys, her arm won't move."

"What'd you say, Tigre?"

"I just tried to move one of her fingers. Nothing. Still as a stone."

"Will her arm move? You know, her shoulder and such?"

"Everything else seems fine, just the fingers."

"How are we going to fix them? It was _sealed_ on!"

"I'll think of something. In the meantime, we should check to see if there are any other problems."

While the others were preoccupied with the arm's faults, Lightnose approached the mat. Even if the arm was bad, he still had to see if she was okay. As soon as he was close enough, the silver patch of scales on his nose lit up, bathing the arm's metallic fingers in a silver glow. The glow seemed to hang in the air, and when it finally faded, the others gave a collective gasp. The fingers of the arm had actually turned bright silver, and now could move!

"How did you do that?" Dan asked, rounding on the little dragon, who was just as surprised as they were.

"I…don't know how I did it. It just happened."

"Lay off, him, Dan. It won't get you anywhere if even he doesn't know what happened."

"Yeah, we can piece together that part ourselves…" Kai said mysteriously, deep in thought.

A little while later, Kai approached the mirror for the second time that day. She was tempted to call Shadow, but someone else had decided to call her first. A shadowed image appeared on the glass. But this image certainly had a lot to say.

_Hey, Kai. I know I haven't really been talking to anyone lately, but I wanted to, you know, get back in touch with everything and…_

"Jakku? Is that you?"

_The one and only._

"I take it you heard?"

_Yep. _

"And, something else you might want to know, we may have someone new there this time."

The figure in the mirror stiffened. _You mean you found…?_

"Yes. Could you tell the others?"

_Even…?_

"Not Ankoku, yet."

_Good, because you know what he will do if he finds out._

"I have my ideas, and none of them look all that great for the one that might be on the receiving end."

_I don't think I'll be able to reach L either. I have no idea where he is._

"I'm not even sure he'll be there."

_So, who should I tell first?_

"Hmmm, how about Kazi?"

_How about Alken tell her?_

"Are you saying that just because...?"

_Because Kazi can be a reincarnation of a demon when provoked? Yes._

Kai shook her head and answered

"Well, at least make sure they know, but if you really feel that strongly about it, ask Alken to tell her."

_Will do._ Jakku answered, and then his shadowy figure began to fade from the glass.

"Give my regards to Bones."

_Once again, will do. _And his figure faded entirely.

_About time he called. I was wondering if he had forgotten the meeting already. _Kai thought, rubbing her temples. At this point, nothing would be surprising to her. Today had probably been the weirdest one she had had in a long time. From the discovery of Ahi's and Lightnose's abilities, to hearing from someone that was so irresponsible it was enough to give you a headache. What was next?

Meanwhile, from somewhere outside the village, Ankoku and Itami waited. At first the entire forest seemed silent and unoccupied, but a rustle gave away their prey's location. Itami dived for the bushes, a screech rent the night and Itami came from the shadows, carrying a calf in his teeth.

"Good job. This will do for tonight. But tomorrow, we're going to need a human feast. I require a strong being, one that can help contain Kurigari's hunger."

"Yes, master." Itami replied, inside, yearning for that feast. Humans were probably the most favorable in darkness, out of the other creatures in the world. The only thing that was richer in darkness than a human had to be a dragon, but the only ones in the area were Dragon, whom they now had no way to touch because of the protection, and the mysterious lizard that the serving girl in the bar ran off with, which they had no other leads on, other than what it was.

Ankoku, though, saw some promise in what little Mrs. Johannes told him. A lizard, with wings and a tail? She also let something else slip, that the serving girl had some odd streaks on her face. Could she have been marked? Was she…? Ah, no time to dwell on that now. Now it was time to eat.

The two moved in on the dead calf, which, like the sparrow, had begun to bleed darkness.

Deep inside a prison of darkness, a large, black, nightmarish, dragon raised his head as a gurgling noise reached his ears. He looked up to see a steady stream of darkness come down through the caverns. He put out a paw, and the dark energy was pulled into it, and down into the dragon's hand. He let out a satisfied growl as the power coursed through his body for a couple seconds, then vanished into his main supply of dark power. He snorted as he thought about how few and far between good power sources where coming. He longed to go out, and get it himself, but he was sealed into these two small beings, only able to come out mentally, but even then there were limits. He could not stay in the combined state for too long, or he would kill himself and his vessels. How he longed for the days where he had an actual body of his own!

But those days were gone, and there was no point in wishing that they weren't. For now, he would have to survive on the meager reserves of what his vessels could get, and wait for a possible third vessel, one that he could use to boost himself into the physical world, even if it was for a short amount of time. All he could do now was watch, wait, and hope something would come.

Kai was, for the first time in a long time, confused. How in the world had the two discovered their powers so quickly? And Ahi had talked to Reki! Could it be that Reki had woken up? It didn't seem like it… It was possible that Reki could only be semi-conscious, but if he was, that would mean they would have trouble combining later on, and with a dragon like Reki, it would quickly turn disastrous. Hopefully, Reki could overcome his inner demons, and if he couldn't they might have to knock some sense into him. Or, someone else could, hopefully they could get to him before he fully awoke. Kai moved toward the mirror once more, and drew a symbol in the glass.

Tsuchi, the earth guardian, rose from the floor of his rocky chamber, as he heard a faint call reach his ears. He moved toward the small mirror in the wall, and gave it a tap. Almost instantly, a hazed image appeared on the glass. It consisted of two beings, a dragon, and a human, and in the background was an even larger dragon, apparently sleeping, but, occasionally, it would stir. Who was it now? Not Unindo, he had already come to in the metalloid dragon. Could it be Rampu? No, too small. All other options aside, there was only one other guardian that fit this description.

"Reki…" he said softly.

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Remember the name Reki, that's important! The metalloid dragon also comes in again later, so if your curious, everything will be explained in time. Review please!


	19. Chapter 19: The Adapting Period

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. The adapting period and everything about it is explained at the bottom. My throat is messed up, and so is the right ear bud on my ipod's earphones, and its driving me insane. Oh well. Enjoy the story. :)

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Chapter 19: The Adapting Period 

_Where- where am I? How long have I been out? Did it work? Is my arm...? _Ahi opened her eyes, and instantly found herself face to face with Lightnose!

"AHHHHH!!!" Ahi cried as she jumped up

"AUUUGGGHH!!" Lightnose yelled as he fell off the bed with a thud. This brought Julian and Tigre into the room, and two very different reactions. Tigre started laughing, and Julian made for the fallen dragon on the floor, helping him back up.

"Erm, sorry." Was all Lightnose was able to say as he put his front paws back on the bed.

"How's the new arm?" Julian asked over Tigre's barely stifled laughter.

Ahi pulled off the covers to reveal her newly metal-coated arm, now black, with silver fingers attached!

"How'd- What does it do?"

"We sealed it onto your original arm. Kai knows what it does, we don't." Tigre answered, finally overcoming his initial outburst of laughter.

"Why don't you try to move it?"

Ahi was amazed. The new arm worked seamlessly, like it had always been there. It obeyed just like her old arm, but in some cases, even better.

"You had better like it; we worked hard on it." Dan said as he and Kai entered the room.

"We all pitched in. Even him." She said, gesturing to Lightnose, who looked away bashfully.

"Aww, it was nothing." He said as a reddish tinge began to crawl up his scaly face.

_So, even dragons blush. _Ahi thought as she looked around at them all. Then, another thought entered her mind, only this time she put it into a question.

"So, I take it this isn't any old metal arm?"

"The arm is supposed to amplify your energy strength in the entire aspects, you know, spiritual, physical, and mental. The arm is made of a type of metal that's very, very durable…"

"How durable are we talking?" Dan interrupted.

"Almost indestructible, but I don't know what the light may have done to the metal, so for all I know, it could have turned it indestructible. But, of course, if you want to use it properly, you're going to have to get some better control, and we might have to step up your training exercises."

"Wait, what?"

"We might have to step up your training. Here." Kai said as she placed a cup of water in front of Ahi. Ahi tried to focus the energy once more, but instead ended up creating a water spout, and partially making it rain boiling hot water, sending Lightnose under the bed with a cry.

"Dan, DO SOMETHING!!!" Tigre yelled as he received the hot shower.

Dan gave a small grunt and raised his hand. Almost instantly, the raining stream of water froze.

"Yeah, we are definitely going to need to step up your training." A soaked Kai said into the awkward silence.

"Take that knave!" Jane cried as she brought down her practice sword onto the rigid one in Gunther's hand.

"You can never match me, Jane!" he cried as he, too, tried to knock the sword from her hand.

"Slay him, Jane! Get him from behind, I mean, the side!!" Dragon called as he tried to help his friend. The two squires, so fueled by the desire to beat the other, swung so fiercely that both swords flew out of their owners' hands, and landed on the ground, crossed in an X.

"You know, there's an old superstition connected with that." Came a voice from across the yard. The two turned around to see a red-headed, tall, teenage boy, wearing a woolen hat on his head, standing in the archway.

"What is the superstition?" Jane asked. Even though she didn't believe in them, she could deny the fact that she was a little curious.

"Well, it's supposed to foretell misfortune, or an adventure on the horizon, but, like I said before, it's just a superstition." He added, catching their disbelieving looks.

"How did you get in here anyway?" Gunther said in an accusing tone. If the other male noticed, he chose to ignore it.

"I just wandered in, I guess."

"Not from around here?"

"Nope."

"Just go right back the way you came, and follow the main road down to the village."

"Thanks." The teen finished with a grateful smile, as he turned around and headed back through the stables. Jane turned back around just in time to see Gunther put his practice sword away.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"I promised my father I'd help him today." Gunther replied as he walked out toward the gates.

Jane watched him go with a raised eye. Dragon landed behind her.

"Care to go on patrol, Jane?" he asked. Jane turned around and climbed on.

"Of course, you big green newt."

"Hurry, boy, we have a big delivery today that will make us a lot of money!"

"Yes Father." Gunther replied obediently. While he was loading up the last of the shipment, he spotted the red head teen further down the road. He seemed to just be lollygagging around over by the moat, tossing rocks into the water. Almost as if he realized something, he straightened up, and headed down the road.

_Guess I won't be seeing him again._ Gunther thought as he loaded up one last crate, and drove the cart back to his house. Meanwhile, Jane and Dragon happened to see the same teenage kid below as they made their way across the sky.

"Looks like he managed to find his way back out." Dragon commented. Suddenly, the red-head looked around, and walked off the path and into the woods.

"What is he doing?" Dragon exclaimed.

"I don't know… Why would he want to go down there anyway? There's nothing there!"

"Well, there is a nice spot down there, by the sea and all, but it's pretty tough when you try to get there without flying."

They watched as their target ran through the woods, only stopping once at a pool of water. They were too high up, so they couldn't make out exactly what it was that he was doing, even with Dragon's eyes, but it seemed like he was trying to wipe something off his face.

_Errugh. That's the last time I let Kaijin give me a face covering. This stuff might cover up the marks on my face, but it won't come off. And it stinks. Where'd he get this anyway?_ He thought as he rubbed at the stubborn paste-like substance that, slowly but surely, slid off. As the twin streaks of red became visible on his face, (they ran in small streaks from the corners of his eyes to down his face) he looked into the pool of water and noticed the green dragon in the air above him.

_So, he did follow me._

He stayed there for a couple more moments, and then broke off for a run through the woods once more.

"There he goes." Dragon said.

"Headed straight into the woods. I wonder where he's going..."

"You want to keep following him?" Dragon called back.

"Do you still have him in your sights?"

"I'll take that as a yes." Dragon said as he flew off after the fast-moving human.

The teen moved through the forest at a fast pace. He knew he was being followed, but he also knew how to shake them. He waited a couple minutes, and then dashed into the thicker trees, where he would be harder to spot. It was on his route, anyhow. He looked up again to see the dragon flying overhead, but very far behind. Obviously wasn't expecting him to turn. Well, he certainty wouldn't expect this. All over the forest floor were hidden tunnels that went as far as the waterfront. If he could just find the right one…

"What is he doing?" Jane exclaimed as the person began to make long, curving turns along the forest floor, stopping every so often, but continuing along.

"You'd think he knows we're up here." Dragon commented.

"He probably does, considering that someone didn't bother to fly higher."

"You wanted to follow him, right?"

Both friends looked down as their target suddenly stopped, and then jumped straight down into a concealed hole on the forest floor.

Jane and Dragon both stared in disbelief.

"Did he just…?"

"I think he did."

Without another word, the two silently went to the ground, and to the spot where the teen vanished. All they could find was a hole in the ground, only big enough for a human being.

_Now that was close._ The red-head thought as he landed at the end of the chute. He hoped that he hadn't kept his friends waiting. Suddenly, two voices interrupted his thoughts.

"So, what's news?"

"Why ask? Same as always, I'll bet. Humans are so predictable."

"The usual is always with its interest. Can you tell us anyway, Hannashi? Please?"

Hannashi jumped off the ground and looked up into the twin faces of a large, red, two-headed dragon. One face was lit with interest, and the other was looking of boredom, resting its head on a hand.

"Just the usual. But the two of you might be interested in this one tidbit."

"Tell me it's not about lodgings again. I don't want to move."

"What is it? News on the others whereabouts?"

"Not quite, but this ought to grab your interest. I'm sure both of you have heard the rumors about the lady-knight at the castle near here, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Uh, huh."

"Apparently the rumors about the dragon in these parts are true as well."

"You mean the one that lives in that mountain? What of it?"

"I'm sure it's important, Tsuin, even if it doesn't grab your attention."

"Oh really, Mr. Happy-go-Lucky? What _doesn't_ grab your attention, huh?"

"Listen, just because the only thing we actually share is everything below the neck doesn't mean that we have to ignore what might be important just because you think everything's a waste of time!"

At this, the head's voice had reached a higher, more hysterical pitch, and Hannashi stepped up in an instant.

"Tsuin, Kaijin, STOP IT!!!!" The fighting stopped immediately as both heads turned to Hannashi.

"It could be important, but that doesn't mean we have to fight over it. Let's just wait until it gets interesting and if it looks dangerous, we'll back out. 'Kay?"

"Right."

"I know."

The three looked up as Hannashi opened his hands, and a tongue of flame about the size of baseball flickered into existence. They watched as it took the shape of a dragon, with a fiery aura around its head. The image twisted and turned, pulling up and out, and then fading into the wind.

"Ahi! Think fast!"

Ahi turned around and rapidly caught the ball in the silver and black-armored hand.

"What's this for?" she asked Tigre quizzically.

"Nothing special, I just wanted to see if you could catch it."

Ahi groaned. Kai was already pulling some pretty hard training techniques on her. She didn't have any time for extras from this jokester. She turned around once more to block another strike from Dan, who was teaching her how to fight with her new-found physical abilities. She ducked as his foot soared above her head, and her fist made its way to his other leg, knocking him off balance.

"Great! Get him while he's down!" Lightnose cried as he surveyed the practice fight from the height of a tree branch above their makeshift practice field (which was, in effect, a real field).

Dan rolled across the grass, and as Ahi came up to connect once more, he pull a handspring, and came at her from above, swinging downward with his right fist, which connected with her left shoulder, and knocked her back into the tree that Lightnose was in. Caught off guard, Lightnose fell from his limb, and landed on top of Ahi. The two lay on the ground, stunned, as Dan stood over them, shaking his head.

"Better, but there's definitely room for improvement." He said as he walked away.

"Urgh. Easy for him to say. He's not under a 5- pound dragon."

"I can't help it. I fell." Lightnose gasped.

"Still, though, that was pretty good." The pair jumped as Julian came out from behind the tree.

"What do you mean? I wasn't that great."

"You were. You just have to be able to recover when you get hit. That or fight without being hit, which isn't easy."

"You're right. Thanks." Ahi said as the group headed back home.

Later, after a dinner of the usual, Ahi headed upstairs, and Lightnose went out to bury something in the alley out back. Kai watched both of them go. A flash of worry crossed her face

"What is it?" Julian asked, watching her facial expression carefully.

"Nothing. By the way, what is the moon phase tonight?"

"A full moon I think. Why is that important?"

"No special reason. Be prepared for a change tomorrow."

Julian opened his mouth again, but before he could properly phase his thoughts into a question, Kai had left the room.

Ahi looked in the mirror in her room upstairs. A skinny, blonde-haired, crystal blue eyed, girl looked back at her. She looked at the black and silver metal that encased her arm, and once again had to marvel at how great it worked.

_So much like my old arm…_ She thought for the hundredth time.

A hazy silver light outside caught her eye. She looked over her shoulder just in time to see the moon rising higher and higher in the sky. Ahi always liked to watch these celestial events, but something felt different about tonight.

As if in answer to the feeling, Ahi gasped as a bolt of pain streaked up her spine, followed by a crack and a pop, and she realized it was lengthening!

The pain rocketed up and down her arms and legs, followed by the same noise, and they, too, began to grow longer. A tingling feeling went through her ears, and when she touched them, she was startled to feel the skin flowing, changing, _hardening? _

Her eyes, too. Something was going on with her eyes. All of a sudden, she could see better. Dark spaces suddenly were brought into focus. This also brought a disorientating spin into the room, and Ahi stumbled over to the bed, clutching at her head until the spinning stopped. Once she looked up and was not feeling like she was stuck in a mini-tornado, she got up and looked in the mirror again, only to jump back in surprise.

She was taller, that was for sure. But as she looked closer, some other changes made themselves known. Her nails had grown longer, and her eyes had taken on a yellowish tint. The irises had completely changed to a lavender-ish blue color, which completely shocked her out of her wits. Eyes never just changed color. Not like that. And now, that she looked around the room, everything in it was now as visible as it would be in the daytime, just with a lack of color.

And with her new improved vision, she realized another shocking change: her hair. She pulled it down into her face to get a good look, thinking it might have just been a trick of the dark, but, her eyes hadn't lied. Her hair had turned a vibrant silver, streaked with dark purple highlights! But the surprises that night had in store for her weren't over yet.

Remembering the feeling in her ears, Ahi put up a hand to feel them once more, only to pull them back down seconds later and run back to the mirror in a panic. Her ears had changed, just like her eyes!

They had become like a smaller version of a dragon's. Scaly and sensitive, even the slightest noise didn't escape her. She could even hear what sounded like a bird lighting down outside. She sat down on her bed again, unable to take it all in. _What had just happened?_

Meanwhile, outside, Lightnose was burying a tidbit from dinner when the silver patch of scales on his nose began to glow. He tried to cover it but the glow began to get brighter and brighter until it was blinding. Lightnose then gasped as his wings began to flail around like the end of the world had come. An icy, tingling feeling made its way into his limbs, making him shake so bad you would have thought he was stuck in a second ice age.

"YEOW!" he yelled as a sharp pain shot through his mouth. He took his hands away from his nose, which now resembled a spotlight attached to his face, and tried desperately to stem the fresh waves of pain that washed over his mouth. Then, as quickly as it had come, it was gone. The silver scales on his nose slowly began to dim until the light was finally gone. Relieved, he extended his wing and...

**THUD.**

"Ouch! Wait a minute..." Lightnose muttered. The alley hadn't been that cramped before. Before, he actually had wing space, but now, all of a sudden, he was tight on elbow room. Was everything getting smaller, or was he getting bigger?

A sudden realization hit him. He reached up and tapped Ahi's window, which he was surprised at how easy it was. Almost immediately, Ahi appeared at the window, and judging from the shocked look on her face, he had indeed grown. A lot, judging from the now-pressing lack of space in the alley. Ahi threw open her window, and both began speaking at once.

"What happened to you?" they both said at the same time, then they both started talking.

"You go first." Ahi tiredly said, resigning herself to another surprise.

"I think mine's pretty self-explanatory."

"So is mine."

"Say, do you have any ideas? I kind of feel like a sardine here."

Ahi thought for a moment before answering.

"Go to that riverbank we were at two days ago."

"The one where we met Dragon and Jane?"

"Yes, that one. Go there and wait for me. I'll be by tomorrow morning, first thing."

"Okay." Lightnose said uncomfortably.

"Wait, you can fly, right?"

"Oh, um, that. I…umm… I don't know."

"It can't be that hard, right?"

"I'll try, but I if I don't make it, you can get what I just buried."

"Lucky me."

Lightnose spread his wings awkwardly, sprung into the night sky. Ahi watched his shaky, yet fast-moving shape fly off before closing the window with a loud sigh, catching her new look once more in the mirror. A sudden feeling of tiredness swept over her, and she lay down on the bed.

_What was going on?_

Meanwhile, another image flowed into her mind's eye, spinning around her mind before all went black.

_It was a castle at the full moon, but it seemed to be weeks from now. A hunched shadow darted out of the darkness, something dripping from its clawed hands. Ahi had the sneaking suspicion it was blood._

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Okay, I think that chapter defintely deserved a good review. How about it? (By the way, why Ahi's and Lightnose's bodies changed was because Reki's spirit is adjusting their body structure,almost[even though he's not aware of it so they are better suited for the spirit when it wakes up. Oh, and by the way, that vision Ahi had is important.) 


	20. Chapter 20: The Night's Events

I don't own Jane and the Dragon, but we all already know that, so let's move on to something a little more new. I can finally get music on both sides of my head now, thanks to my old set of ear buds that are slightly frayed, but still work. One thing I have to say, when you join things like smiley central, avoid the prospect of getting a new web search toolbar; I must have three already...(Google, AIM, and Web Browser). We're watching Cinderella in English class. Ah, the good ol' days... Before I succumb to nostilagia of my childhood, please enjoy this chapter:)

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Chapter 20: The Night's Events 

Bright sunlight streamed in the window, making Ahi roll over with a groan. Then she opened her eyes wide. _Last night!_ She shot up and ran to the mirror, only to see the same reflection that had been there the night before.

She sat down on the bed again with a defeated sigh. Wait, if that wasn't a dream…If she was still…

"Oh no, Lightnose!" she cried running for the door. She tip toed slowly down the stairs then broke off at a run and went straight out the door, which shut with a slam.

_So much for being quiet._ Ahi thought, running down the alleyway, which looked barely recognizable, probably due to the crushed objects, and large claw marks in the wall. She looked at the steadily rising sun.

_Great, I'll never get there in time._ Ahi thought, then she stopped, and slapped her forehead.

_Of course, why didn't I do it before?_ She thought as she steadied herself, and felt the flow of power run to her legs once more. Taking a step forward, she jumped up to the roof of the building, and to the next, and the next. Looking down she caught sight of the open market below. If this were yesterday, she ordinarily wouldn't have been able to do this, but, due to her new vision, she was able to make out the faces of the people below.

Her heart skipped a couple beats. There, in the crowd, was Mrs. Johannes. She landed on the roof, and looked back. From what she could tell, Mrs. Johannes seemed to be in a heated debate with a man who seemed ready to rip her head off. Curious, Ahi jumped down into the nearby alley to hear better.

"Listen, lady, just pay up, and I will leave you alone."

"Oh really, and is this before or after you want to come back for more shillings? When are you going to actually leave me alone? When you have finally bled me dry?"

"Look, I didn't want to have to drag it this far, but you forced me!" The now- fuming man roared as he roughly shoved Mrs. Johannes toward the very alley that Ahi stood in. Ahi quickly ducked into the shadows as the man gave Mrs. Johannes one final shove, and she fell into the confines of the dark and dank space. She looked up into the face of the man standing over her, and, for the first time, Ahi saw plain, cold fear blanched out all over her face. In all the years Ahi had lived with her, she had never, ever, seen her scared. The man raised his fist, about to bring it down right on her head, when Ahi reacted. She jumped in between and put out her metal hand to catch his fist in mid-air. Once the man's eyes had met hers, he pulled out of her grip and ran off down the alley and out down the street.

Ahi turned around, and saw Mrs. Johannes looking at her like she had seen death itself. Ahi opened her mouth to say something, but Mrs. Johannes beat her to it.

"Get back!!! Stay AWAY!! You're his, aren't you?!! Go AWAY!!!" she screamed, jumping to her feet and running past the shocked Ahi and into the streets, screaming her head of all the way.

_What was all that about? _

Lightnose, meanwhile, slept in the cover of a group trees. Unfortunately, his spot happened to be right next to a, loose, dew-soaked patch of grass. He inhaled deeply, and shot up wide-eyed.

Then Ahi landed just in time to see Lightnose up on his back legs, trying to snort something out of his nose.

"I know I might regret this, but what's going on?"

"I got someding id by node." Lightnose once again, trying very hard to snort the offending object out. Ahi shook her head, only to be startled by a voice from behind the trees.

"I thought I'd find the two of you here."

Ahi whirled around just in time to see Kai, sitting in one of the tree branches of a tree off to the side, not too far from the ground.

"How'd you know we would be here?"

"You think you were the only ones who knew about this place? When I came here, several years ago, I had a liking of places like this. I guess you can say I'm a big sucker for plant life and nature." Kai said as she descended from the tree and sat down next to Ahi

Ahi's brain had just begun to process this when another question came to mind.

"Aren't you the least bit shocked?"

"By your new appearance? No, not really. It's kind of interesting, actually."

"Oh." Ahi said just before another image flowed gently into her head.

_The front door of the shop opened with a bang. Ahi only had time to look up at a flair of rainbow-ish locks when something came flying into her face._

Ahi blinked once or twice as her mind returned to the present. All was still silent, only interrupted by Lightnose's muffled snorts as he tried to dislodge whatever managed to enter his nasal tract. Then Kai spoke.

"I take it that you want answers?"

"I would like some clearing up as to what happened last night, yes."

"You remember what I said about half-bloods being part animal?" Kai asked. Ahi nodded in reply.

"Well, their bodies aren't very well suited to their animal side when they are first born, so, around their preteen or teen years, they undergo a physical change. This change might range from stronger eyesight to differences in the skeleton of said person. Although it usually happens over a longer period of time, probably so the person has a longer time to get used to all these changes. It's a little bit much to take in when it happens all at once."

"Yeah, it can be a little disorientating…" Ahi commented with a small grin. Suddenly, a backwards sounding snort reached their ears.

"Uh, guys, I think I swallowed it." Came Lightnose's surprised voice three seconds later.

Meanwhile, what seemed to be whole worlds away, another surprise was unfolding, but this time for the inhabitants of Kippernia Castle. At first, it seemed like a regular call of council.

All of the castle staff were there, including a thoroughly bored Dragon, who was perched up on the wall. The king stood up before his subjects, wearing a look that none of the others had seen him wear before. He started to speak.

"My dear and loyal subjects, it has come to my attention that something has been raiding pastures and fields by night, resulting in a loss of cows, sheep, and horses. Descriptions of the perpetrators are vague, but the way in which these animals are found later is the most shocking. They have been burned, sliced, or stabbed to death, but, apparently, it was only done to disable them, what the real cause of death is remains anonymous. One farmer has seen an unnatural collection of black flames near one of the slaughtered livestock's bodies, which can only lead to the belief that we have an unnatural hand involved in this. If anyone knows anything, I would like to hear about it now."

Everyone in the yard remained deathly silent, all contemplating what they had just heard. Dragon even raised his head to think it over. _An unnatural hand?_ He had to suppress a shudder. The business with the livestock reminded him of the, thing, that had been in his cave a couple months ago. Could they be connected, somehow?

He scanned the crowd for Jane. He wasn't willing to talk to the king about this, but his best friend was another matter. His eyes caught Gunther looking up at him, filled with suspicion.

_He doesn't actually think…_ The thought was too far-fetched to even finish. Gunther, meanwhile, whispered something to Sir Ivon, who also gave Dragon a suspicious glance. Dragon gave him a look back. Why did they think he did it? Everyone knew that no dragon could breathe black flames, even them. What were they trying to pull? Then again, he knew he had enemies in the castle, and if this was going to give him a problem later, he would have to be more careful.( Author's Note: Yes, I know its a little OOC for Dragon, but the other options I could think of weren't the smartest ones.)

While the king was making this announcement, a shadow watched from the archway, just out of seeing range. Magnus, the trader, listened to the words the king used. _An unnatural hand?_

The reptile no doubt, who else could produce fire whenever they wanted to? Magnus pulled off for the gate, contemplating this piece of information, turning it over and over again in his head like an interested bargainer with a piece of merchandise. It could be useful later, but it wasn't something to go and reveal himself over it now. All he would have to do is wait, and watch, for an opportunity to use his new weapon against that reptile.

And, from the confines of the shadows, another pair of eyes watched. Ankoku had to stifle a chuckle. They were going to think it was the green dragon in a of couple days. But, just to be sure, he would have to leave a couple incriminating clues, only to make it look like Dragon did it. And the red-haired girl that consorted with dragons. If she knew too much, he might have to do something about it. But, even if she did nothing, he still might need her later. Either way, time to get back to Itami. He must be informed of this development before they do anything. Smiling to himself once more, he withdrew into the depths of the darkness from which he came.

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Sooooooo, how was it? Please press that little blue button down there and let me know what you think! Later:) 


	21. Chapter 21: Siblings Reunite

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. My trimester at school is ending, and lucky for me, I don't have as many tests as I did last time. Thank God for that. I managed to find out how to get rid of my access browsers, and now I actually have a decent amount of space on my internet window. Either way, I thank flyingheart23, SunRise19, and KrisEleven for the reviews(No the story's not done yet). They really helped. Before everything gets all mushy, enjoy the story. :)

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Chapter 21: Siblings Reunite 

"Umm, where's the fire, Julian?" Kai said, as she and Ahi arrived in the front door (they had wisely left Lightnose back at the river for, obvious reasons) witnessed Julian and Tigre running back and forth across the kitchen floor. Dan wasn't even in the room.

"WellKai,you'renotgoingtobelievethis,butwejust-"

"Hello, name's Tigre. What's yours?"

"Tigre, it's me, Ahi."

Tigre was silent for a couple moments, then he finally spoke.

"No way. The Ahi we all knew was shorter, way shorter."

"Tigre, it is her. I'll explain later. For now, what's going on?" Kai said quickly, turning her head back to the greatly frazzled Julian, who blurted out:

"Kazi wrote to say she's coming!"

"Satan made flesh is coming to visit! Satan made flesh is coming to visit!" Tigre yelled, drawn right back into his initial panic, starting to fidget uncomfortably once more.

"Wait, when did she say she was coming? And where's Dan?"

"Tomorrow and we have no idea. Does that clear it up?"

Kai's expression changed from one of confusion to one of slight panic and resignation.

"Get a room ready. And if you see Dan, tell him I've got some food that should last him about a week, maybe two."

"I don't get it, who is Kazi?" Ahi said, completely confused and frustrated, a couple hours later.

"Well, we are sisters, but she and I…"

"Don't look a thing like each other?" Tigre supplied.

"I guess you could say that."

"And Kazi can be the scourge of God when provoked." Tigre cut in once more.

"The scourge of God?" Ahi asked, now more than a little wary of the visitor.

"Well, not quite the _scourge_ of God, but the closest thing to it. And I can talk for myself." Kai said. Tigre gave them both a 'I'm just saying' shrug, and walked off to go help Julian set up the room Kazi would stay in.

"What's with him?"

"He managed to get on Kazi's bad side last time she came to visit. It was his first time here, just like you, so I guess he didn't think she would get so worked up over it. Over dinner, he made a remark that got Kazi mad. Long story short, I had to help him climb down from the tree by the river sometime after dark." Kai paused, seeming to considering something, and then called up the stairs.

"Hey, Julian, did she happen to mention if she was bringing Alken?"

"She said he might be stopping by, but she didn't say anything about bringing him with her." He yelled back.

"Who is Alken?" Ahi asked once Kai had come back into the room.

"Alken's…a friend. He's not normal, though, just to let you know."

"It's fine. I live with not normal everyday, remember."

"For us, even, he's pretty unusual."

"Oh."

Next morning, practically the whole store was on edge. Ahi hadn't seen Dan since the time he and her spared, which was two days ago, and in his absence, the tension was almost as visible as the door that she was staring at. She had heard stories from Tigre and Julian, mostly horror stories, but she couldn't help but be curious. First off, Kazi was supposed to be Kai's sister, but she didn't look a thing like her, so then what did she look like?

The answer came a little too suddenly for Ahi's liking. One minute, the door was flying open with a bang, and the next, she saw a flair of color, and had something shoved into her face.

"Hello, you're new aren't you?" said a strange voice from somewhere over her head. Ahi looked up into the face of someone who could have been more than a couple years older than her. But the most surprising thing about the face was that it was framed by rainbow-colored locks, and their were, right smack on her face, twin, blue streaks of scales, running horizontally across her cheeks, but stopping before they touched her nose.

"You know, you could close your mouth now. My appearance isn't that shocking, compared to yours, anyhow. To be honest, even I've never seen anyone with hair like _that_."

Ahi was drawn rudely back to earth by the remark.

"Well, I've never seen anyone with rainbow colored hair before, so I guess that puts us both in the same boat, doesn't it?" she blurted out before she could stop herself. What instantly ran through her head were all the horror stories she was told, but to her relief, Kazi was smiling.

"Don't worry about it. I was just testing you. At least you aren't a pushover. I like it better that way."

"Jane! Jane! Look at this!" Princess Lavinia cried as she climbed on one of the smaller rocks in the quarry. The princess, prince, and squire were accompanying the king in the stone yards; the prince and princess were there to learn about the quarry, Jane was merely there to keep the little majesties out of trouble, which was proving to be more difficult by the minute.

Suddenly the princess let out a screech of fright, which brought both Jane and the king running.

"There's a big, scary monster over there!" She cried.

"What, my little pumpkin? What did you see?"

"A monster!" she squealed, gazing wide-eyed at the rocks like she expected something to jump out at her.

"I will see what it is, your majesty." Jane

Jane walked warily over through the rocks, and came across a suit of armor, or at least what looked like a suit of armor. It was so battered and dented it was tough to tell what it was. Plus, it seemed to be on its side. Jane gently put her hand on the metal, and was startled by how cool it was. Usually, if metal is left out in the hot quarries for most of the day, it heats up pretty fast. This metal, however, felt like it was in a shady forest rather than the hot valley. And it was surprisingly light, too, when Jane tried to lift its arm. The sudden movement forced the armor to roll over onto its back, and Jane gasped with shock. The armor was molded into the shape of a dragon, but on two legs, like a human, instead of four. And, but she could have been mistaken, she thought she heard a faint groan when she turned it over, but there were no signs of life in or near the metal. Jane looked at the armor, an idea forming in her mind.

She walked back with a "There's nothing back there, little majesty. Just a discarded bit of metal."

"See that you get it cleaned out, Jane. We don't want metal getting in the way of the masoners." The king said over the princess's cries of 'but it was big and black, and scary!'.

"What _is_ that?" Dragon asked, gesturing at the metal.

"Some kind of a suit of armor, made to look like a dragon." Smithy said, as he worked on the greatly battered armor, laying on one of the long shelves, as Jane and Dragon looked on.

"Do you have any idea as to who might have made it, or where it came from?" Jane asked. It had only been minutes since she had managed to find Dragon and get him to bring the armor back to the castle. They were both intrigued, but unfortunately, Smithy didn't have that many answers for them.

"All I can tell you is that it is made of a metal I've never seen before. It's harder than the plating for Sir Ivon's armor, and you know how thick those are."

"Okay, number one, it's tough." Dragon commented.

"Whatever happened to it must have been tougher." Jane remarked, looking at the multiple dents, scratches, and marks in the metal.

"Not sure, but it must have been almost indestructible to leave that kind of damage in it. As for the maker, I don't even know anyone that smiths with this type, or anything close to it. This thing is one big mystery." Suddenly, Jane caught sight of a peculiar looking mark on the chest plate of the suit. It resembled the eye of a tornado, and it seemed to be scratched right into the metal.

"What's this?" she asked, putting her hand out to touch it. Before she could even brush the metal with her fingertips, the armor gave an almighty jerk, like it was alive, and fell to the floor, startling the dragon and two humans out of their wits.

"W-what was that?!" Dragon cried, warily approaching the downed metal. He gave it a sharp poke, and quickly pulled away, but to their relief, the armor made no attempt to move.

"Now, that definitely isn't normal." Smithy said as he moved it back to the shelve, careful to avoid the imprint.

"I think we've seen all we can here." Jane remarked as they began to smell the unmistakable scents of Peppers cooking wafted over them.

Just as they were heading over to the kitchens for dinner, they failed to notice a gleam in the eyehole of the helmet, like something inside the armor was checking to see if the coast was clear. It could have just been the wind, but what sounded like a faint sigh came from the armor's direction. Whatever was inside began to recount the horrific events from the past night.

_All through this trip, darkness had been his friend. It had kept him safe from the people that lived along his route, and made sure he could actually travel. _

_But, now, as Alken ran through the forest, he realized that his newfound 'friend' had suddenly turned sinister. He heard a crash of a tree behind him and tried to speed up, but something large and black landed in front of him, like a predator cornering its prey._

"_Itami!" he cried "It's me, Alken! Why are you chasing me?"_

_Itami did not answer, but gave him a menacing grin before swiping out with his clawed paw, which just nicked Alken's shoulder._

_Fear instantly took over. Alken turned tail and made a dash for a sheltered spot in the bushes. Itami waited for a couple moments, and then took off once more. He spotted Alken from the air, dived, catching the metalloid off guard, and grabbed him in his claws._

_Alken tried to struggle, but Itami was making sure to dent and batter him as much as possible to keep him from moving. Then, without warning, Itami suddenly let go, and Alken had to grab onto the black dragon's hand to keep from falling._

"_First you want off, and now you want to stay? Make up your mind!" Itami taunted as he roughly pulled the poor Alken right off and dropped him once more. He fell, down, down, down…_

_With a loud crash, he fell into what sounded like a rock pit. He waited for Itami to come and torment him again, but the black dragon was already long gone. He tried to get up, but he realized that Itami's battering had damaged some vital parts of his armor, rendering him immobile. _

_**Guess all I can do now is wait for someone to come along.**__ He thought as he settled down for what seemed like a long night. _

Meanwhile, an awkward scene was being played out at the dinner table in the store. Tigre seemed determined to stay out of Kazi's reach, Julian was quieter than usual, and Kai remained impassive to the whole thing. Ahi reluctantly tried to strike up a conversation, but no one seemed to want to talk. Finally, Kai said something.

"Hey, Kazi, Sakana came with you, didn't she?"

"Yes, of course. Why do you ask?"

"Where is she staying?"

"Down by the river."

"She might run into someone down there."

Kazi shot Ahi a glance, and Kai nodded in an affirming way.

"That's right." Kai said as she bit into another piece of bread.

Lightnose had to admit, the night was beautiful, in its own way. The sky, the river, everything looked so different in the dark. The sky especially. He had never seen stars, but he had heard about them from Ahi before, but this was beyond what she had described. He would have probably stayed up till morning, just staring at the sky, if it weren't for the fact that he was suddenly interrupted.

A funny sound from down in the water caught his attention, and he looked down just in time to see the water swirling, _rising?_

No, it wasn't rising. Something in it was rising. Lightnose made for the nearest thicket of undergrowth, just as a dragon emerged from the water. As Lightnose looked on, he realized that this one was more sleeker, more agile-looking, than Dragon. It was also a darkish color blue, that got lighter in certain areas (or was that just the light from the moon?). It climbed up onto the bank and looked around, like it was trying to seek something out. It moved to the very spot where he had been lying, and seemed to be trying to sniff him out. Then, it turned to the thicket in which he was hiding, and said

"Come on out. I know you're back there. Its okay, come on out." It spoke in a female voice, calm and soothing, like how a mother would speak to a scared child. Lightnose hesitantly left his spot, but remained tense, just in case he had to run, or fight.

But, as soon as he was within reaching distance, the strange dragon put a hand on his shoulder and asked "Are you all alone here?"

He nodded, not sure of what to say.

"Would you mind if I stayed here?"

Finally, he spoke.

"No, I wouldn't mind. It's okay with me."

"Thank you so much! My name is Sakana, by the way. What's yours?"

"Err, Lightnose…" he said, as he had never talked to a female dragon before, and he wasn't quite sure how to go about it. And he knew that his inexperience was showing. Luckily, if the other dragon noticed, she chose to ignore it. Why did he feel an almost familiar feeling? A warm feeling, a feeling that you knew someone cared. A parental feeling. His nervousness eventually wore thin, and he found himself slipping off, right there under the stars.

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Awww, I put in a cute end here... No, he doesn't like Sakana in a romantic way, he's just never had a parental figure in his life before. Please Read and Review. 


	22. Chapter 22: Mother Dragon

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Alken, Ahi, Lightnose, Kai, and any other names that you might not be familiar with are mine! No taking them unless you have my permission!

So, anyhow, today I went to my mom's office 'cause I had off.

Now I am wwaaaaiittting for martial arts class. It's like waiting to have a tooth pulled(minus the pain). You know its going to happen, and mentally you're preparing yourself for it. Otherwise, my under-construction mud room made some serious progress over the week. (We now have a WINDOW and part of the FLOOR!!! Halleluiah!!! Thank you God!! Oh thankyouthankyouthankyou…) As you can see, I'm looking forward to having a 1st floor bathroom again. Ummm, well, I guess that's it…Enjoy the story! Please R&R:)

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Chapter 22: Mother Dragon

The next morning, when Ahi went to see Lightnose, she was shocked to see another dragon there as well. After a quick explanation from Lightnose, they began the introductions

"My name is Sakana. It's nice to meet you, Ahi." The blue dragon said calmly. Ahi realized why Lightnose felt a little funny talking to this dragon. He had never met a female dragon before. The only other member of his kind that he had talked to was Dragon, and that had been several months ago.

_I wonder how they're doing now…? _She thought, resting her head in her hands, looking out at the water. Her mind went back to the conversation they had, which seemed like only days ago.

"_So, where are your parents?_" _Jane asked._

_No answer._

"_Do you have any parents?" _

"_I think I might have had some at one point. I just…don't remember."_

Ahi felt a little disturbed at that fact that she had said that so carelessly and now she was curious about her parents. Who were they? And why couldn't she remember, no matter how hard she tried?

Lightnose happened to notice his friend's far-off look.

"Shilling for your thoughts?" He inquired.

"I don't know." She said, then there was a pause.

"Say, Lightnose?"

"Yes?"

"Do you know what parents are?"

"Umm, I might."

"You know, a mom and a dad?"

"And those are?"

"A male and female that give birth to, and they're supposed to be like really, really close friends to you."

"Say, how do they make kids anyway?" Lightnose asked, and Ahi went slightly red.

"Uhhh, I'll tell you when I think you can handle it."

Lightnose fell silent after that, and then he spoke up.

"Do you think I have a mom and a dad?"

"You probably do. Everything has to come from somewhere."

"What's a mom or dad like?"

"I wouldn't know. I don't remember my parents."

Lightnose stayed quiet for a couple moments, then said:

"Guess we're in the same boat then, huh?"

It was sunny over Kippernia castle as well, and Dragon was making sure it was put to good use. He was lounging out on the wall, when he heard what sounded like someone laughing over by the stables. He looked over just in time to see the stable doors blow open, and inside was what looked like a boy. He had a pale face, and reddish eyes, and their were two streaks of jet black scales on his face. His hair, too, was jet black, with a streak of gray in it that ran all the way to the back of his head. He was also laughing maniacally, and then his shadow changed. It began to pull up, into a large black shape, larger than the castle itself. Faint words began to reach his ears, seemingly coming from the shape itself. All he could hear was _give…me…you…now…_

Then the shape pulled away what became a wing in order to reveal the same, hideous, horrifying face that he had seen back in his cave. Then, to his surprise, it began to talk in a hoarse, raspy voice.

_I've been watching you, and you should feel honored. I have chosen you to be my third vessel, so YOU ARE MINE NOW!!! _It said as it threw a sphere of darkness in his direction. The wall fell apart under his feet, and he fell, down, down, down…

He opened his eyes to find himself on the ground in front of the wall, with Jane looking down from the side that the practice yard was on, asking frantically if he was all right.

"Yeah, fine. I just…" Dragon stuttered as he realized what had happened.

_It was a dream. A nightmare._ He told himself, although something inside said that it was no nightmare. He pulled himself back up to the wall, only to receive another surprise.

_The armor was moving!_ Not just a jerk or a groan, but the arm was actually rising into the air! They instantly rushed over (Jane grabbed a practice sword on the way), and were shocked to see eyes in the eyeholes of the helmet, seeming to put all their concentration into raising that arm. But the joints were too battered, and the appendage fell limply to the metalloid's side again with a loud clang. A sigh came from the helmet, and then the eyes seemed to finally look over and notice their audience.

"Umm, hi?" Alken said, sounding nervous.

Next thing he knew, he was getting knocked off the table by Dragon. He hit the ground with a loud bang, and shakily rose into a sitting position.

"What was that for?" ,he asked, "That's not going to hurt me, by the way." He added, indicating Jane's practice sword.

Jane was surprised. He didn't sound mad or upset, merely confused and defeated. Dragon seemed to have noticed this too, for he said, awkwardly:

"Well, you look like you've been through the mill."

"In a way, I have."

"What happened?"

"It's a very long story, and it doesn't make much sense unless I tell the bigger part involved with it."

"We can listen." Jane said reassuringly, and Dragon followed up with an 'as long as it's not boring', which earned him an icy look from Jane. Alken, however, looked un-offended.

He launched straight into the Guardian Dragon legends, occasionally being interrupted by Dragon's questions. Once that had ended, Alken launched into another story

"The guardian spirits were sealed away, but it wasn't a permanent exile from life. Someone stole the vials that contained the spirits and spread them around. Each eventually made their way into a dragon and a half-blood, except for four."

"Which ones?" Jane asked, as Dragon was now hanging onto every word that was being said.

"Reki, Sendo, Kurigari, and Unindo." Alken said before continuing. "The person that held onto Sendo's vial thought that his spirit should be in, well, someone who's dead. They took it out to a local graveyard and poured it onto the grave of a lost loved one that he knew was half-blood when he was alive, but the dragon wasn't as easy. It took them weeks to find one, and when they did, it took a while to take. But it did, and lo and behold, Sendo now had his place. Reki was lost, but he apparently made his way to a dragon and a half-blood. This is where I come in. When I was actually alive. I used to be a dragon, just like you." He said, indicating Dragon at this point.

"I made fast friends with a girl who was sealed with one of the guardians. Her sister was also one of the sealed, alongside a dragon named Shadow. They were working on a way to open the gate between this world and another, so the things of the world could be at peace. Another was involved in the project as well, a boy named Ankoku. Just when they were about to open the gateway, Ankoku's true colors came out. He wanted to open the portal because he himself was a sealed, and his dragon counterpart was in that end. He also said that in order to keep the gate open long enough for something to come through, you'd have to give up a part of yourself to satisfy the transfer. We were all disappointed, but didn't want to stop. I guess we didn't think of the consequences, which came back to bite us later. When it came time to open the gate, Ankoku waylaid Shadow by trapping him in a cavern. He collapsed so much it took Shadow forever to get out. By this time it was already too late."

"Why? What happened?" Dragon asked, amazed that the tin-can on the ground could have once been a dragon no different from him.

Alken closed his eyes against the memories that seemed to be clearer and more real than ever before. As the river of the events flowed, he told the story.

"_Alright, Alken, here we go." Kazi said as she, Kai, and Ankoku positioned themselves at different intervals around the cove pool. Alken grinned to her, and then nervously scanned the skies for Shadow. It was really irking him that Shadow wasn't here yet. He was never one to be late, especially on this kind of an occasion. As Alken returned his attention to the group, he just caught the shadow of a grin pass over Ankoku's face. Then Kai began her chant._

"_Gateway to a world untouched_

_Un-trodden soils, clean skies_

_Clean seas, green fields_

_Let them all be ours to see_

_Open the way; allow us to see the unseen!"_

_Suddenly the pool began to glow. It got brighter and brighter until Kazi said "Look at that!"_

_They all looked down with a gasp. The pool was showing clear images of a forest, grassland, beach, and other places. Suddenly, it turned so bright they couldn't look at it straight on. Then, Ankoku added in his own words._

"_Itami!! Come!!" At his words, a large, black, scaly hand rose from the pool, soon followed by a large black dragon, with a blue-scaled dragon, yelling "NO!"_

_Suddenly, a black figure rose from the pool, and declared_

"_You have brought over beings from the Overworld. You must give us your payment, NOW!!" it roared, diving at Alken, Kazi, and Kai. Somewhere in the chaos, Ankoku and Itami got away._

_It went for Kai first. A tendril of darkness wrapped itself around her arm, Kai let out a yell, and when it finally pulled away, the other two were horrified to see that her arm was completely gone. All the way up to the shoulder. _

_Then, the thing went for Kazi. She tried to run, but tripped and fell over. Just as the tentacle was about to wrap around her, Alken jumped in the way and took the hit._

"_ARRRRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!" He screamed as he felt the tentacle dissolve him from the inside out. _

_The last thing he remembered was Kazi, yelling his name. _

"What a sad story." Jane said in a sympathetic voice. She could hear Dragon sniffle every so quietly from behind her.

"Wait, if you were dead, how did you come back to life?" Jane asked.

"That's the next part of my story. And its also one that doesn't make that much sense, even to me."

_Alken opened his eyes with a groan. Above him was a stone ceiling, below him was a hard ground. He looked around to see Kazi kneeling on the ground, long rainbow locks covering her face, a blue dragon was standing over her, talking in a low, comforting tone. He looked the other way to see Kai and Shadow. He was about to call out, but he noticed that they both looked extremely shaken, and that Kai had a hand on her left arm._

_**Wait, I saw her lose her left arm. I saw it happen. But, then again, I thought I was dead. How did I come back to life? **__He thought. He tried to move an arm, and was surprised. His arm never moved like that. He thumped his tail against the ground, but instead of a thump, the noise it made was a clang. This got the others' attention. Kazi looked up and the look on her face was what scared Alken the most. It was a mix between sadness and happiness. Delight and pure grief. Alken didn't have much time to look, though, considering Kazi engulfed him in a tearful hug. Was he smaller? It seemed like it. He tried to talk, and was relieved to find that he could._

"_Kazi, what's wrong?"_

_She pulled up and looked at him again, tears running furiously down her face. _

"_I missed you." Was the only thing she said._

"That doesn't exactly explain how you came to be like this." Dragon said, getting impatient at the break in the story.

"This is how. I became a sealed." Alken said slowly raising an arm and pointing it at the twister mark on the front plate of his armor.

"It happened when they brought me back to life. In order to do it, they put a guardian spirit in me. Unindo, guardian of wind. I guess you already figured out what happened to Kurigari."

"Ankoku and Itami?"

"Yes. And they didn't stop there. They always seemed to think that I was a mockery of the guardians, considering that I wasn't born sealed. Itami was the one who caught me on my way through the woods. He chased me deep into the forest, and then picked me up, and then dropped me right into the quarry, which doesn't exactly work wonders on metal."

"So, that's how you…" Dragon trailed off

"Became what I am? Yes."

"Do you want to go and find your friend?" Jane asked.

"Well, I kind of can't really move." Alken said as his arm fell uselessly to the ground.

"We can try to get Smithy to fix those dents without realizing you are. Will that work?" Jane said comfortingly, for the metalloid dragon was looking downcast.

"That'll be just fine." Alken replied, looking up both physically and mentally for the first time in days.

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Sorry about the sob story, but I like to make up all kinds of ways that my characters became what they are, and eventually I find something and stick with it. Or I never do. Either way, please R&R. See you next time I update! ;)


	23. Chapter 23: In One World and Out the Oth

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Wish I did.

I got a floor on the mud room now!! WE GOT A FLOOR!!! And I've only been back in school for one day and already my math teacher is giving me a quiz. Urgh.

Anyway, one thing I hope to learn with this is how many chapters you have to go through before the little window gets a scroll. Ummmmm, that was one of my useless ramblings, don't pay any attention to it.

Quote of the day:

I can survive any crisis, I've been through Manhattan.

Now that I got that out of the way, enjoy the story. :)

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Chapter 23: In one World and Out the Other

Ahi came downstairs groggily, rubbing the sleep out of one eye. A ray of sunshine shone in through a window, making her groan in displeasure. She came into the kitchen and was surprised to see that it was completely unoccupied. That wasn't normal. Usually most everyone was up already, except for maybe Tigre or Kai.

Ahi looked around, getting the feeling that she wasn't alone in the room. Suddenly, someone grabbed her shoulder. Without even thinking twice, she flipped her unknown assailant over her shoulder, which landed on the floor with a loud thud. Just as she was about to draw her fist back for another hit, she got a good look at the person.

"Tigre?"

"In the battered flesh. Now, can you please let go of my arm?"

"Sure. Sorry about that." Ahi apologized as she let him up.

"By the way, I've got a message from Kai. She says to meet her, Kazi, Julian, Sakana, and Lightnose at the river as soon as the sun's a decent way up."

Ahi remained silent for a moment, then exploded.

"What?!? Then I've got to go now!! Bye!" She yelled, running out the door, which slammed shut behind her, leaving a confused Tigre in the dust.

"She's going to be late." Kazi said as she and Kai looked off down the river.

"She'll be here. Don't count her out yet." Kai said, and Kazi rolled her eyes. Lightnose wasn't really paying attention, on account that he had fallen asleep right next to a tree. Julian was leaning against said tree, eyes trained in the same direction.

Suddenly the cries of "Waaaiiiiittt!!!!" were heard, and all spectators turned to see(Lightnose shot up and looked too) Ahi tearing through the woods like a deranged lunatic hopped up on sugar, kicking up a huge cloud of dust as she went. As soon as she reached the group, she tried to stop, only to crash into Kazi.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Kazi yelled, punching Ahi over the head.

"I couldn't help it. I was only told about this little arrangement a few minutes ago." Ahi retorted.

"Guys, lets not forget why we're here." Kai said, closing the argument before it could get ugly. The two broke up, Kazi throwing Ahi a death glare, which she had to pull away from.

_I didn't know anyone could do an evil eye that good… _Ahi thought, now knowing the reason why Tigre never wanted to be around Kazi. Then Kai broke the silence.

"Say, Ahi, have you ever wondered why there aren't that many dragons around these days?"

"Yeah…" Ahi said, both wary and curious. She had heard from Dragon how he had searched everywhere for others of his own kind, but had come up empty-handed. She was also a little wary of this because she wondered where this was going. Living with Kai for a couple months had taught her that Kai could be unpredictable when she wanted to be.

"So, I take it that you brought me down here to do more than tell me about dragon legends?"

"You see, when humans became dominant and began to get rid of species that they thought were too intelligent or too powerful for them to control. Once this began to happen, a sorcerer took pity on these rapidly vanishing creatures, and made a realm of their own, so they could get away from the slaughtering of their races. They called this place the Overworld. In this world, sprites and magical creatures roam free. It's like something you'd find in a fairy tale."

Ahi's mind eye did the imagining for her. Right away, she could see trees the size of the buildings in Kippernia, and rivers that were huge and flowing, like a mini-ocean. Kai continued to go on with the story.

"However, there's just one catch. The time flow of our world and that one is different, so a day here is three days there. Now, why I'm bringing this up is because I think it would be a good way for you to get a grip on your abilities. This is what I meant when I said we would step up your training. We put you and Lightnose in there for about seven days here, twenty days there. I also want you to find a friend for me."

"Who?"

"I'll put it this way; you and Kazi aren't the only ones who have friends that aren't human."

"You mean you're going to throw us into some world?" Lightnose cut in, indignant at the idea.

"Yep, that's it. Follow us." Kazi said, starting to walk off into the woods. The others followed until they came to a small pool just off the river. Once they got there, Kazi swirled her finger in the water. The ripples churned up the small pool, and pictures of forests, wetlands, beaches, and mountains appeared in the water. The swirling images finally settled on a forest scene, or at least, what looked like a forest scene. All they could see was the sky and the tops of trees.

"Time to go.", Kai said, " Go into the window with the image of a forest. And don't worry, my friend will help you out."

Taking a deep breath, Ahi stepped resolutely into the pool, and Lightnose soon followed after.

Ankoku looked up at the sunny sky with distaste. As if the night wasn't short enough. He also had a funny feeling that something big was happening. On the other hand, Kurigari was growing impatient. He wanted a third vessel, and he wanted it now. He had already made Ankoku and Itami enter Dragon's dreams in an attempt to get into his mind, but to no avail. He had woken up before they could get him. But, perhaps a change of tactic would work here. Dragon seemed remarkably close to the red-headed girl. Maybe he could use that against him. Yes. Maybe he could, with the right timing and illusion. Itami came up to his master's side.

"What shall we do now, Ankoku?" he asked.

"I have a couple ideas. For now, let's just concentrate on getting more power."

Alken had to suppress a grunt as Smithy pounded out another dent in his arm. Itami must have given him more dents than he thought. If this took much longer, they would have to heat him up again, which would take a couple hours. His metal was about as easy to fix as it was to dent, but, luckily, Smithy was up to the challenge.

He had been at work for the past couple hours, pounding heating and shaping. All the while, Alken knew that Dragon was watching from the wall, acting like he was sleeping. Even though Alken knew he would hate it if he pointed it out, he knew about the dream. It alarmed him that Kurigari was going through such lengths to break into Dragon's mind. If it was for the reasons he thought it might be, Dragon could be in danger of more than just another couple dream intrusions. Long story short, if it wasn't stopped, it could get much worse.

* * *

There, chapter 23! I know it wasn't as long as the last ones were, but I really thought there wasn't much more I could add to this. Please R&R! 


	24. Chapter 24: Take the Plunge

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. By the way, my school has blocked Fanfiction (AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!), so I won't be updating as often as I used to. Aside from that, I have bombed tests, been buried in Biology homework (-half under a mound of papers- CALL THE NATIONAL GUARD! CALL SOMEBODY! HELP, I'M GOING DOWN FOR THE THIRD TIME!!!! HEEELLLLPPP!!!-sinks into mound of papers-), and my Ipod has crashed officially for four times in the last week and a half. In short, Mondays are not my favorite days of the week. How was yours?

Favorite saying of the day:

When you die, would you rather come in in a perfectly preserved body, or come in sliding, dirt covered, panting, and saying 'can I do that again'?

* * *

Chapter 24: Take the Plunge 

Ahi was floating, yet sinking. Rising, yet falling. Going forward, but still feeling like she was being tugged back.

She looked up to see Lightnose plunge in after her, and reach out. Instantly, she got the message, and let him scoop her up in his hand. Now that they were together, the two looked around at what was there.

What they saw was like something out of some kind of a twisted selection of museum exhibits. Everywhere they looked, all they could see was windows, filled with everything from grasslands to what looked like the inside of a volcano. There were sounds too, from birds chirping to the sound of waves crashing down on beaches.

They glided along, taking in their surroundings. Suddenly, Ahi saw the window with the upward facing view of the forest. She tried to tell Lightnose she had found it, but when she opened her mouth to try and talk, she realized that she couldn't. Now matter how hard she tried, her voice seemed to be a nothing here, like it was lost in the flow of all these other sounds. Ahi tapped Lightnose's hand to get his attention, and when he looked down, she pointed out their prize window. With a flap of his wing Lightnose took them both in through the image.

* * *

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Julian asked Kai. 

"Why not? Shadow really wants to meet them, and plus, they could use the practice."

"That's not what I meant. They're going to want answers, and before you know it, you'll be telling them about what happened all those years ago."

"Then again, I'm keeping secrets from them too. They have a right to know about that. They will only learn about how the pool became a gateway if they want to."

"Only if they want to?" Kazi asked.

"Only if they want to." Kai answered, still walking resolutely ahead.

* * *

Alken heard a small rustle near the front of Smithy's shop. He tried to raise his head, but remembered that Smithy had not yet pounded out the damage there yet. To Alken's relief, it was only Jane. 

"How are you doing?"

"Better. I can move my arm now. That's pretty good."

"Good."

"Where's Dragon?"

"At his cave."

"Where's that?"

"In the mountains overlooking the kingdom."

"Ah."

"See you later."

"You too."

"Thanks." Jane said as she headed off for her tower, leaving Alken alone in the smith forge.

He stared at the ceiling, contemplating what he had heard.

_It's going to be a long day._ He thought.

* * *

Ahi must have yelled somewhere on the way out, but, judging that she still couldn't hear herself, it could have just been a squeal. However, that was the least of Lightnose and Ahi worries, considering that they felt like they had just been catapulted forward onto a grass and low-level plant filled ground. Ahi lay there for a couple moments, the smell of vegetation filling her nose, then, shaking herself out of her initial daze, she sat up. 

The first thing she saw was Lightnose, lying next to her.

"You alright?"

"Define 'all right'." Came the muffled answer.

It only took the two a couple seconds to realize where they were. They were in that forest that they had seen from the window, except it now was in 3-D and you could now look at form any angle instead of just up. It seemed like the trees themselves went on forever. That gave Ahi an idea. She quietly slipped off towards one of the trees. Lightnose was too preoccupied with the view to notice that she was gone until he turned to ask her a question.

"Hey, Ahi, have you ever seen trees like this? Ahi?"

Lightnose looked around and realized he was all alone.

"Up here!"

Lightnose looked up, and his jaw hit the ground. Ahi was several hundred feet up, in a tree.

"W-what're you doing up there?" he asked, still shocked at how high she was.

"You got to see this! I can see for…"

"For-what?"

"AUUUUGGGGHH!!!!!" Ahi yelled as she fell off of her tree limb, Lightnose flung himself out to catch her, but the impact he feared did not come. He looked up once more to see Ahi, just hanging by her, _foot?_ Ahi looked to realize the same bizarre truth. She was hanging by the bottom of her foot, like it was stuck to the underside of the limb like there was a piece of tape in between the foot and the wood.

"Seems you've got yourself into a bit of a jam, huh?"

Both friends looked around wildly, but they couldn't see anyone.

"You've got a huge mound of sap on your foot, by the way. It's what's holding you there." Now Ahi looked behind her to see what looked like a small, green, ghost-like being with a catlike head, surrounded by an emerald green glow. Seeing their surprised looks, the being sighed and said,

"My name is Haru. I'm an earth spirit, hence the ghost-like appearance and green glow. Now, about that tree sap…"

"How do I get it off?" Ahi broke in.

"I was just about to tell you that. Just pull away really hard, but I'd wait until you…"

"WAAAAAAARRRRGGGHHH!!!!" Ahi yelled as she accidentally pulled away too soon, plummeting downward toward the ground at an alarming rate. Lightnose made a diving last minute catch and caught her before she could hit the ground.

"Anyway, you guys foreigners? Everybody from around here knows about that tree sap." Haru said once all the action stopped.

"Yes, I guess we could be called foreigners." Ahi replied, and then suddenly said.

"Say, you wouldn't happen to know anyone who is friends with someone named Kai, would you?"

"If you're talking about a dragon named Shadow, then yes, I do." Haru answered. "I can bring you to him, but it will take a couple days."

"Alright, looks like you're our travel guide."

Dragon laughed as he and Jane flew through the sky at breakneck speed. He knew that they were supposed to be patrolling, but he knew that Jane wouldn't mind. Besides, he wanted to have some fun!

The two laughed as Dragon ascended into the clouds, then plunged downward, towards the ground like a boulder, then pulled out at the last second, climbing higher once more. The next hour or two went that way, until it was just about to get dark.

Dragon flew Jane back to the castle, bid her goodnight, and was about to leave when he heard a faint voice calling his name.

He turned, around, wondering if he was hearing things. Wait, there it was again. He looked around, homing in on the sound. It was coming from somewhere inside the stables. He hesitated for a moment, remembering the dream.

_But that was just a dream. _He thought, and he reached for the door.

"Dragon?"

He jumped and looked toward Smithy's forge to see Alken, sitting up, looking right at him.

"Oh, hello, I was just…"

"Following something you couldn't even see?"

Dragon's eyes narrowed.

"How did you…"

"Just because I lost my body doesn't mean I lost my hearing. Have you had any other happenings that you couldn't explain?"

"Just, once, I think. It was up in my cave." Out came the story, starting with the encounter in his cave, the writing on the wall, and concluding with the dreams he had had, the ones that involved the nightmarish dragon.

"So, have they been increasingly vivid, or just terrifying."

"He looked pretty real to me."

"I wasn't talking about the appearance in the cave; I was talking about the dreams. When I say vivid, I mean does the stuff that is happening in them seem real, like it was happening, but then you would wake up right?"

"H-how'd you know?" Dragon asked, surprised. He hadn't even told Jane about that dream. He hadn't even mentioned how the dream had ended, or what had happened when he woke up.

_Maybe he saw it happen. I mean, he did move right after I woke up. _

"I want you to be careful. Don't go toward the illusions. Trust only what you can recognize. As for the dreams, remember, its all in your head. Now matter how real it may seem, don't be afraid of it."

Dragon at first looked confused, then understanding seemed to show in his eyes.

"Alright." He said, still sounding a little like he thought Alken was putting him on.

"Listen first, understand later." Alken replied, then waved a hand, like he was saying 'go'. Dragon nodded and then took off, heading for his cave.

Alken watched him go with a half-sad, half-hopeful look in his eyes. All he could do was wait and hope that Ankoku would think before trying anything else. It might be a little while before they would make their next move anyway, considering that he probably now knew that Alken was there. Still, hesitation would not keep Ankoku away forever. Alken would have to somehow warn Dragon about the reason why Kurigari wanted him. Warn him without scaring him haf to death. If only Kai were here, she had a better way of explaining stuff like this! He'd just have to make do. And he'd have to watch out for Ankoku now.

* * *

Speaking of Ankoku, Mr. Dark and Devious wasn't that far away. But, right now, he had other things on his mind. 

"You mean you just left him in the quarry and flew off?!" Ankoku yelled, as Itami looked down at the ground, ashamed. He had been furious when his illusion failed. He had been even more furious when he recognized the aura that disrupted it. It belonged to that metal-made freak, Alken! And right after Itami said he had incapacitated him!

"Answer me!" he roared, and Itami looked up, expression vacant.

"I have no excuses. The fault was my own and I shall take due responsibility for it."

"You're darn right you will, but for now, we must gather the night's suppliers." Ankoku said, turning angrily away from his vessel counterpart. He would deal him a suitable punishment later, now, it was time to hunt.

* * *

Kazi looked out the window as night was setting in. 

"What's eating you?" she whirled around just in time to see Dan, leaning on the doorframe. He gave of the radiant air that he was concerned, yet didn't want to come within grabbing distance.

"Finally showed up, hmm?" she asked sarcastically, then, seeing his serious look, added "It's just that, well, Alken never breaks his promises, and he promised he'd be here a couple hours ago, and he's well, not."

"I'm sure he'll show up. He's probably just waylaid by the new security they put up, you know, the guards that were put up to stop those animal killings."

"And they have no idea who is behind it?"

"Nope. None at all."

"I hope Alken didn't meet up with either of those two. We all know how dangerous they can be."

"He's careful. He'll be fine."

"Right, still though…" Kazi trailed off, unable to admit the unthinkable.

"I'm sure he's fine." Dan repeated this time a little firmer.

Kazi turned around and smiled warmly in his direction.

"You know, you look much better when you smile."

"Keep dreaming, lover boy." Kazi reproached as her smile turned into a sarcastic glare.

* * *

Yes, Dan has a sadistic side too, he's not just all action and no talk. And we see a couple funny Ahi and Lightnose scenes. R&R, PLEASE! 


	25. Chapter 25:Straying with a Purpose

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

I am indifferent, zombielike, and depressed. I need a better mood! Can I borrow yours? I promise I'll bring it back! Enjoy the new chapter:)

Quote:

There are good times, bad times, and times where you want to jump off the nearest cliff.

* * *

Chapter 25: Straying with a Purpose 

Ahi walked through the undergrowth after Haru, tripping over every vine or plant that lay in the way. She had to admit, even with her heightened vision; it was tough to tell exactly what she was walking on, or getting caught in. After she landed on the ground for about the fourth time in the span of five minutes, Lightnose finally said,

"Okay, are you sure you don't want to ride on my back?" he said, a sympathetic look beginning to creep over his face.

"No, I'm-WAAA, OOF! - fine." She replied as she got to her feet once more. Lightnose winced as she took another spill, then reached out, plucked her up from the ground, placing her right on his back, and wordlessly plodded on. Ahi didn't bother to protest, but wordlessly thanked him instead. She couldn't have been sure, but she thought she saw the shadow of a grin pass over his face.

"We're almost to the sheltered spot I mentioned. We'll stop there for the night, then continue on in the morning." Ahi was relieved. If it wasn't the fact that they could barely see, it was the eeriness of the forest after dark. The only source of light that they had was the green glow emitting from Haru, faintly lighting the way.

* * *

Dragon studied the writing on his wall with a sigh. He felt like there was something important in the words, but he didn't even know how to translate them, much less understand what they meant. Why did shortlives have to have so many ways of talking? It would take someone years to learn it all. He had heard about other groups of shortlives from talk around the castle. Why did they have to have all these different ways of saying the same type of things? Why not just have one language and have everyone learn that? (**A/N: This is a question I have asked myself as well, especially in Spanish class.)**

The other thing that was on his mind was what Alken said. Did he know more about this than he was letting on? He was right about one thing, though, the nightmare was pretty vivid, almost like it was actually happening. But, overall, what had happened in his cave all those weeks ago was what really had him shaken up. And now other things were happening. What did it all mean? He sighed and curled up next to the wall, dozing off in only a few seconds.

* * *

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountain, Ankoku gave a grin. Night was the time that he was supreme. There were barely any limits on his power at night. The people at the castle had not even considered the fact that a guardian spirit of old had the same power, so he was still an unknown entity to them. Ankoku had to suppress a laugh. Humans were so naïve and easily fooled. It had been child's play to take their livestock. The things had given such wonderful cries as he and Itami had chased them down and slowly took their darkness, little by little as they slowly died from the blood loss that had to be inflected. But Ankoku didn't mind. He was Kurigari and Kurigari was him. The two were so alike it was hard to distinguish one aura from the other. 

But, he thought, there was only one power that could rival his. A power that he had been searching for for years, to get rid of it, but he never managed to find it. As he looked up at the full moon, a name rang through his mind: _Reki…_

* * *

Alken lay on his side, looking up at the starry sky above him, and sighed. He wished he could move his legs, but sadly Smithy hadn't gotten to them yet. So, for now, he was confined to the table, unless he wanted to fall off the table again, which he didn't want to repeat. 

_I just hope he fixes them soon. I don't want to be here for much longer. _Alken thought. He just hoped that Kazi wouldn't be too mad. He was a day late, after all. And the fact that Kazi could get angry over the smallest things was what made him worried. Once she got through with him, he was probably going to wish he was back on this table.

* * *

Ahi lay down on the ground and looked up at the huge tree that encircled the small clear spot that Haru led them to. The small green spirit hovered a little ways over their heads, keeping watch for them. 

Ahi sighed impatiently, how were they supposed to do this? They didn't even know what Shadow looked like! How did they know that Haru could be trusted!

Lightnose looked up at her sigh.

"Something on your mind?"

"I'll say."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"How do we know this is, well, a good idea?"

"I'm not sure, I'm just following you."

"What if I'm not right?"

"_I_ think you're right."

"What if I am not right? What if I mess this up?"

"We'll just start over. Keep trying, right? Take it one step at a time."

"Right. Thanks."

"Don't mention it." Lightnose said as he lay down, and gently pulled his wing over her to protect her from any nightly predators that might come by.

Just before she dozed off, Ahi thought she heard a faint 'goodnight, friend' drift away on the wind.

_Wind flows, river blows_

_O'er the secrets that I hold_

_Earth burns, Fire shifts_

_The world is pulled to its knees_

_But I hold the light, the dark, and the power_

_That can pull the life from the jaws of oblivion_

* * *

My weird gift of poetry comes out once more. R&R, please. Falls off chair and goes to sleep on the floor zzzzzzzz... 


	26. Chapter 26: Night Ends, Day Begins

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Okay, in this chapter, I am going to apologize in advance for what I do to Dragon here, it's just how the story worked out! (Dodges debris thrown by angry Dragon-fans) Enjoy! I'll put up chapter 27 too! (gets clobbered with a dictionary) If I survive this. (gets clobbered with more random stuff) AHHHHHHH!!! ;)

Quote : 'I'm not running away, I'm regrouping!'

-an awesome Bleach avatar, thnx to whoever made it! (sry, I'm bad with names)

* * *

Chapter 26: Night Fades, Day Begins 

"Dragon!! Dragon!!"

Dragon jerked awake just as Jane came running in, a frantic look on her face.

"Trying to sleep…deal with it in the morning…" he murmured, rolling over.

"Dragon, where were you last night?"

"Here.", he pulled his head up to look Jane in the eye, a suspicious note creeping into his voice. "Why are you asking? What's going on?"

"There was another attack on a farm last night and they found a dragon footprint near the animal's body! Now everyone thinks you are the one that's preying on the livestock!"

Dragon took a moment to take all of it in.

"I just told you it wasn't me."

"I know. I never said it was you."

"Thanks, but what are we going to do about everyone else? They are not exactly the most understanding people we know."

"You should probably stay out of the castle for the time being, until I can try to undo the damage."

"What about if I just go outside?"

One look from Jane's face told him the resolute answer to that question.

"Okay, no."

He watched her leave the cave, probably to go appeal to the king on his behalf. He sighed as he thought about how that would probably go, that is, nowhere except downhill. It couldn't get any worse than this.

Little did he realize, it could.

Had Dragon looked up, though, he might have seen the shadow that wasn't a shadow. It looked like a tall, white and black haired boy, wearing all black, lying on the ceiling like he was immune to the force of gravity. His face and arm were the two most shocking things about him, considering that his left eye was decayed, the bone was showing, and in the eye socket was a gray eye, with the pupil in a snake-like slit. His arm had obviously seen the wonders of decomposition, as it was composed of only bones, but they weren't human. The fingers seemed to be long claws, and the hand was larger and more paw-like than a human hand, and both hands were tucked under his head. He looked down at the dragon beneath him, an expression of pity beginning to show on his face. But it soon darkened to one of indignant rage. He knew who was behind this. It didn't take a genius to figure it out. Ankoku and Itami, and probably Kurigari. He'd need to have a talk with those two. The boy's form suddenly turned into a gray shadow, which slipped out into the light of the day, off to the permanent night.

* * *

While all this was happening, Ahi, Lightnose, and Haru continued their trek to where Shadow resided. For at least a day and a half, they traveled without a problem, relying on Haru's direction and cutting corners via flying when the way was clear. Lightnose had gotten much better at flying; although landings still continued to be a problem (Ahi by now had learned to hold on when they came down). On the third day, however, the trio came to a range of mountains, so high that it looked like they went on forever. But, there was still an ever-looming problem involved. 

"There's no place to grab onto. No ledges, not even a crack to slide your foot into." Ahi observed, scratching her head in thought.

"That's no problem. I can fly us all over." Lightnose suggested, flexing his wings eagerly.

"I don't think that's a good idea. Even though it might look safe from here, farther up are violent winds that can de-wing any inexperienced flyer. Not saying that you're inexperienced, but you lack the skills needed to stay in the air."

"Meaning?"

"A self-taught flyer like you wouldn't last a second in those winds. You'd have your wings stripped right off before you can blink."

That shut Lightnose up. While he was contemplating just how bad it would be to lose his wings, Ahi decided to ask a question.

"So, if we can't fly over it, how do we cross it?"

"There's a pass further down. It can get us across."

"And where will we end up?"

"Dragonic Valley."

Lightnose jumped back into the conversation in an instant.

"What's it like?"

"The valley? It's a very colorful and lively place, so I've heard. There's also dragons there. Lots of them. Every single color of the rainbow, and every type, except for a couple rarities that aren't around anymore."

"What kinds?"

There were some that were never found when this gateway was open. One of them was the moon dragon."

"What were they?"

"A dragon, just like you, but they were completely influenced by the moon."

"Oh."

There was a long pause in the clearing, and only the chirping of the birds filled the air.

"Guess we had better get going." Lightnose said, finally. The others nodded, and off they went.

* * *

Smithy pounded out the last of the dents on the leg armor, and wiped several beads of sweat off his brow. Unfortunately for him, the fire that was needed to heat the metal also made the forge into a radiator. Alken, meanwhile, couldn't feel the heat. He was too busy making up an excuse for Kazi. _I'm sorry I'm late. I ran into…What should I say? I was waylaid by…no, no, that won't work…I happened to run into……No, that will only make her suspicious. How about if I said I was……no…_

Alken stopped his search for an excuse just in time to throw the passing Jane a wink while Smithy wasn't looking, but she didn't see him. What also irked his curiosity was the expression on her face, a mix of anxiety and fear. Smithy, too, noticed this, and (lucky for Alken) decided to ask Jane what the problem was.

"Is something wrong, Jane?"

Jane sighed before answering

"You remember the incident the king was talking about? The one about the livestock"

"Yes."

"The farmers think that they found the culprit, but if I don't talk to the king, Dragon is going to get in trouble!" And with that, she ran off before Smithy could ask another question. But he didn't need to. Alken had heard everything. And it didn't take him long to put two and two together.

"Your Majesty!" Jane called as she spotted the king walking through the royal gardens. He turned to the sound of her voice just as she caught up.

"Yes, Jane?" he asked, eager to get back to his viewing of the royal gardens.

"I have reason to believe that there is another person involved in the livestock issue. I don't think Dragon is the one killing off the farmers' livestock." Jane said in a rush. The king seemed to listen as she told him that Dragon had been in his cave on those nights when the killer had been active. She also mentioned the fact that there might be a clue to the killer's identity somewhere in the town (even though she couldn't prove it) backing it up with the fact that if the stalker was human or anywhere close to intelligent, it would probably be lurking somewhere near or in the village. Once she had gotten all this out in a rush, she looked back at the king, almost fearful that he might have taken this all the wrong way, but to her relief he seemed to partially believe her. He told her that he would try to let Dragon off, but she would have to come up with some proof that he wasn't the guilty party. Jane thanked him and then, as she walked away, began to see the error she had made in accepting these conditions. They didn't even know who was killing the livestock, or what exactly killed them. All in all, it would look like Dragon wasn't off the hook just yet.

* * *

"Are you sure this is the pass that will get us over this mountain range?" Lightnose asked a deeply annoyed Haru for about the fiftieth time since they started their climb.

"I am positive. Just give me a moment to think." Haru angrily replied as he hovered over their heads. Lightnose gave a groan as he pulled himself up to the next ledge. Dragons were built for flying, not climbing! How was he going to get to the other side without flying? Ahi, meanwhile, barely had any trouble at all as she jumped from ledge to ledge as easily as an acrobat.

"Come on, Lightnose, it's not that difficult."

"Says the one that jumps up like a frog."

Ahi gave an exasperated sigh and continued her climb. Lightnose could be real impossible when he wanted to be.

Suddenly, Haru broke the silence.

"We're almost to the crest of the pass. We'll be able to work our way down into the valley from there."

The other two said nothing, but Haru noticed a definite increase in the rate that they were going. He gave a small smile before resuming his ascent of the rocky ledge.

* * *

Meanwhile, night was beginning to fall in Kippernia once more. Dragon, although he knew it was against Jane's wishes, had ventured out of his cave. He had headed to the one place he knew no humans would follow him, a small, secluded, swamp-like area that was rich in bog-myrtle. He was searching through some of the vegetation, when he stopped. There it was again; that voice, calling his name. He ignored it, until the voice changed. It began to melt and twist in tone, until it sounded just like…

"Jane?" he asked turning around. To his horror, there was a loud roar, and Jane screamed.

"Jane!" he cried, shooting off in the direction of the sounds.

He followed the noise into an area of the forest that even he himself did not venture to. The trees were all dead, and an unnatural chilling fog hung in the air. He couldn't understand why Jane would come here, of all places.

_Maybe she didn't come by choice. _A nagging little voice said from somewhere in the back of his mind. He went on until he came to an area were the trees were ripped out of the ground, and a small pool of murky water lay in the center. At first, it seemed like no one was there, but then a large silhouette appeared from the fog.

He stifled a shudder as a jet-black dragon with red eyes emerged from the fog bank. The air around them got, if possible, even colder.

"What do you want?" he asked in a partially hostile- taunting tone. Then his expression changed to one of mock understanding.

"Oh, wait, you probably want this, am I right?" he asked in a taunting manner, holding the limp Jane in a large black paw.

"Put her down." Dragon growled. No one was going to hurt his friends and get away with it.

"Make me. What's one human, anyway? The world is polluted with them." Dragon was shocked at his answer. No matter how many times he had seen a human, he had never thought of it as just another thing in the world. He might have for a while, but after he met Jane, he saw them as individuals, not one mass. How dare he say that!

"Ooh, did I hurt your feelings? Or maybe you're mad at the fact you weren't able to get here in time?"

_Get here in…he doesn't mean…Jane's not…_ Dragon's mind had now gone into a spiral. He's lying, right?

"You didn't…she's not…"

He squeezed lightly, and then replied casually.

"That's usually what it's called when the heart stops beating, yes?"

"But…is she…?"

He squeezed her again, this time a little harder.

"No pulse." He said, relishing in the words, and drawing them out for as long as he could, and enjoyed the despair that seemed to fill Dragon's mind and emotions.

"So easily broken, aren't they?" he jeered, twirling the still form of Jane between his fingers. A growl slid from deep within Dragon's throat.

"It's exactly what he says." Came a sly sounding voice from the direction of the pool. Dragon turned just in time to see the hooded figure from his came walk slowly from behind a tree. He reached up, and removed the hood. Dragon gasped. It was the same boy from his dream! He backed away a little, cautious of what he might see.

"She is already gone. In other words, _your friend is __dead_." Ankoku dragged out the last four words, loving every second that despair took to fill Dragon's eyes.

"No…that can't be true…she isn't…that's not…" Dragon stuttered, the message still echoing in his ears. This was not happening. It couldn't. It just couldn't. No possible way.

"Is it that shocking? She was just a fragile human, after all. They break easy." Ankoku bluntly stabbed further at the opening wound. Dragon opened his mouth and shot back with a snarled:

"What did she do to you? Why did you have to…?" he couldn't finish the sentence.

"Actually, its _you_ that we want, not her. She was just a pawn to lure you out, instead of putting our effort into trying to get by that protective spell on your cave. That would just be a waste of power."

"What do you mean by protective spell?"

"Ah, so it was done without your knowledge? Interesting, I would have thought you had some hint of what it really was. The writing should have tipped you off."

"What was so special about the writing?"

"It wasn't so much as what the writing was as to what it said. As for the exact content, I'm afraid even I don't have direct answers. You'd have to look elsewhere."

"Anyway, what are we going to with this?" Itami said as he dangled Jane's body by her hand, holding it with only two of his clawed fingers.

"Stop that!" Dragon snapped, causing both Itami and Ankoku to look at him. Ankoku smirked.

"What's the big deal? All the cost is is just one little girl. Refuse our offer and it will be the whole kingdom."

Dragon had to suppress a shudder, but what they did was going too far for him to forgive, or to even consider it! He was going to fight back, regardless of what their offer was! Then Itami opened his mouth again, only to say:

"You know, if you had only gotten here sooner, she might have still been alive. So, technically, this is all your fault."

That did it. Dragon was furious. But, deep underneath it all, he feared that he was right. He was too angry to dwell on thoughts like that now. Taking a deep breath, he felt the familiar feeling of fire work its way into his mouth. He let it out in a stream of dazzling flame, but Itami was already prepared. He shot his own black fire straight into Dragon's, and completely neutralized it! The black fire cut up and struck Dragon in the chest, knocking him off his feet. Before he could get up again, Itami's clawed paw came out of nowhere, holding him to the ground.

"You have quite a sense of bravery, or do you not know who we are?"

"Alright, who are you?"

"Itami and Ankoku. Vessels of the darkness guardian, Kurigari. So, you have heard of us." He added, catching the glint of recognition in Dragon's eyes.

"Guess Alken did tell you everything."

"How did you know Alken was at the castle?"

"Those dreams you had were no coincidence. We were trying to reach you that way, but with that freak around, it was hard to establish a proper link with you."

An angry look manifested itself on Dragon's face once more. First they had to strip Alken of a body, and now they were trying to walk all over him. Dragon's rage had taken hold of him now, and there was no stopping him from what he was about to do. He rolled over, throwing Itami off balance, and charged at the two, roaring with fury.

* * *

Meanwhile, the gray shadow slid quietly through the forest, homing in on the oppressive aura that he knew belonged to Ankoku and Itami. Suddenly, he came to an area where all the trees looked dead and seemed to be decaying faster than a mound of bodies at the graveyard. Jakku looked away in revulsion. Even the land of the dead was better than this. This was pitiful, and a regularity for anyone that dared to enter darkness's domain. The aura itself seemed to suck the life from all living things within a fifty foot radius. Jakku chuckled softly to himself. Lucky he wasn't living.

Suddenly, he caught sight of a footprint on the ground. He stopped and resumed his own form to take a closer look. Obviously not Itami. Or any other dragon he knew.

"Bones?" he said out loud. Another gray shadow, this time larger, zoomed up toward him, and pulled up into a dragon with an eye just like Jakku (skull hole, with the gray eye and snakelike pupil). He, too, seemed to have been to death and back, considering that parts of his scales looked worn and in a couple places, bones were visible. He studied the footprint, sniffed it a couple times, and finally said.

"Definitely no one we know."

"Yeah, tell me something I don't know."

"Definitely alive, too."

"There we go."

"It also smells like that dragon we were spying on this morning." Bones added, causing Jakku to stop in his tracks.

"We've got to hurry up and get over there."

"Right behind you, old friend."

The two dissolved down into a shadow form and shot off for Ankoku and Itami's lair once more.

* * *

Okay, two of my characters have just been introduced, Ankoku and Itami's true intentions are coming to light, and no, Dragon is not gonna die! (directs this at the fans, who all leave in a hurry) Whew, R&R please. 


	27. Chapter 27: Nightmares turn to Dust

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. I can finally go into the kitchen again! Our house doesn't feel like a three-floor, crowded apartment flat anymore! Hallelujah! Anyway, sorry I haven't updated in a while. I was having some trouble getting through life. Don't ask. Anyhow, enjoy the story:)

* * *

Chapter 27: Nightmares Turn to Dust

"Heh, this is too easy." Itami said as the exhausted Dragon charged him once more. He stepped out of the way in the last second, pushed Dragon roughly in the back, and he landed on the ground for what felt like the fiftieth time.

"Think we should end it now?" he turned to Ankoku, who was eyeing Dragon like a predator eyes its prey. Dragon tried to get up once more, but he was too slow. Itami caught him off guard by striking him in the chest with his tail, and he fell into a group of trees. Before he could even attempt to get up again, Itami's paw landed straight on his already-bleeding chest, holding him to the ground.

"All this fuss over one human. I'm honestly beginning to wonder if this is worth it. He doesn't seem strong enough to take Kurigari."

"Guess we had better just kill him, right?"

"Feel free." Came Ankoku's venomous reply.

Itami's other clawed paw came up over his head. Dragon watched in amazement and fear as a sphere of darkness formed in the center of the paw. He was about to bring it down on Dragon's head, when a cry rang out through the clearing.

"ENOUGH!"

All heads turned to see Jakku standing on the edge of the clearing, a look of contempt on his face.

"Picking on innocents again, are we, Ankoku?"

"I wouldn't call it picking on them, just teaching them a minor lesson."

"You sure are a tough teacher. _Bones! _"

Another gray shadow pulled up from the ground, and took the form of the zombie-like dragon, Bones.

"I call Itami!" he cried as he darted at the black dragon, knocking him away from Dragon. The two flew at each other like rabid wolverines, and started to fight. Jakku, on the other hand, dived at Ankoku, and the two rolled around on the ground, punches and all kinds of attacks flying like a mini-tornado. Dragon sat dazed as he watched Itami throw Bones off, then spring into the air, and circle above the dragon as he struggled to his feet. Itami dived, and just as he was about to sink his claws into Bones's head, the zombie dragon rolled out of the way, and jumped into the air himself. The two dragons flew at each other, each fully intending to knock the other out of the air. They met in the air, and both began biting and clawing each other. Bones managed to get in a good swipe, and Itami pulled back, but came in with a slash that cut off Bones's left wing. Bones fell about thirty feet to the ground, and Dragon rubbed his eyes just to make sure they weren't playing tricks on him. Usually, a ripped off limb bleeds quite a bit, but there was absolutely no blood anywhere, near the limb, or on Bones. Bones reacted quickly by rolling over the stray appendage, and somehow, it managed to reattach itself to his back. He took off for the air again, Itami followed, burning with the desire to be rid of the infuriating dragon once and for all. Once they where at level height with one another, both dragons opened their mouths and each fired off a shot of flame, Bones's was grayish-green, and smelled like a freshly dead body, Itami's was black, and fierce. The two flames met in midair, clashing with deadly force. Both canceled each other out, and the two dragons dissolved back into biting and clawing. Jakku and Ankoku, on the other hand, and begun firing off a new round of attacks. Jakku fired a gray beam out of his skeletal hand that stank just as bad as Bones's fire. Ankoku retailed with a dark jet of his own, which Jakku ducked to avoid. The two stared at each other for about a minute, squaring off angrily. Then they both reacted. The two dived at each other, hands glowing gray and black with the power that flowed through their bodies. Their hands met in midair, causing a mini-explosion to rip through the clearing, but it didn't appear to touch Bones, Itami, or Dragon, but-

"JANE!" Dragon cried as the wave of clashing power washed over Jane's limp body, bruising and burning part of the skin. Once the wave had passed, he hurried over.

"Jane…" he murmured lamely. She was…_gone_. There was no other way to put it. Dead was dead. Ankoku and Itami, meanwhile, had escaped via the thick fog. Jakku turned his attention to Dragon.

"This a friend of yours?" he asked. Dragon nodded slowly, unable to talk. Jakku put his boned hand on Jane's shoulder. For a moment, it looked like he was trying to turn her over. A gray light began to show on his fingertips. When it had reached a certain pitch, Jakku uttered a few words

"_Andoxu gen'ei_."

Instantly, Jane's form collapsed and dwindled into a faint shadow, which drifted away on the wind.

"It was all an illusion. She's fine. She isn't dead."

"She's not… But I thought…Then how did…You're not joking, right?"

"I wouldn't joke about something like this. As for _how_ he did it, darkness just has a natural ability to trick the eyes into seeing something that isn't. What you saw was one of Ankoku's choice illusions. He usually uses them to make his opponents more vulnerable, or just to make a person more negotiable. Now I've got a question for you. How does someone who doesn't seem that knowledgeable about such legends know who those terrors are?"

"Umm, do you know someone by the name of Alken?"

"We've met. What does he have to do with it? No, wait…" Jakku held up his hands, stopping Dragon before he could answer. "…he told you how he got into that suit of armor, right?"

Dragon nodded in reply.

"Do me a favor, please…"

"What?"

"…don't tell anyone what you heard from him. His story is part of several others, including my own. A couple of us would like to keep memories like that under wraps, thank you."

"There's something I want to ask."

"Yes?"

"How didhis wing get reattached after it was, well…"

"Ripped off?" Bones supplied, cutting into the conversation.

"Yeah, that…"

"It helps if you're already dead."

Dragon gave Bones a skeptical look.

"He's not lying. We are, technically, dead."

"Then…"

"Yep, we were the ones that were given the halves of Sendo's spirit. So, we got a chance to be able to wander between the realms of life and death, so, here we are."

There was a pause before any one spoke.

"So, I happened to catch the part about a protection spell on your cave. What was he talking about?"

"I think it was this writing that somehow got on the wall of my cave. He told me what it was, but he said he didn't know what was in it exactly. Do you think you could translate it?"

"I don't think I could do it. If he didn't know what the spell said, I probably won't."

"Oh."

"Oh, and about Alken, don't worry. I'll come by to pick him up and take him to where he has to go."

"How'd you know…?"

"I've been exploring ever since I got here. I happened to see him in the smithy."

There was a long, awkward pause, then Jakku spoke again.

"You'd better head back now. They won't stay away for long, but I think they'll hesitate before trying anything that direct again."

Dragon nodded, then, just as he was about to fly off, he turned back and said "Thanks."

* * *

"W-why is it s-s-so c-c-cold?" Lightnose shivered as the trio climbed higher into the pass.

"We're getting closer to the highest point. We'll be heading down shortly." Haru replied, unaffected by the cold, since he was a sprite. Ahi, meanwhile, was still climbing, despite the fact that the snow and the harsh winds made it almost impossible to even tell how much further they had to go, much less how far down the solid ground was.

"I think the peak is coming up soon." Ahi called back. Haru sighed. So it was true. They were vessels to Reki. Only someone with a large amount of mental energy could tell they were almost there, especially under these conditions. Or, Haru thought, suppressing a shudder, Reki might be more than just partly conscious.

Within a few minutes, the peak was visible through the flurries of snow. Pulling themselves up to the ledge, the trio had to stop and look at what they were seeing.

They were looking at a lush, snowy forest, mostly made up of pines, and a multitude of other trees that Ahi didn't recognize. It seemed so peaceful and tranquil; it was tough to believe that dragons lived there.

_They all probably live further in. _Ahi thought as she jumped down from the ledge. Lightnose and Haru followed

"Wow. I wonder where the dragons are." Lightnose thought aloud. Haru turned to them and replied:

"They all reside in the center of the valley, including Shadow. Let's go."

With that, the trio journeyed into the Dragon's Forest.

* * *

"Pretty quiet." Tigre remarked into the stern silence that seemed to hold the entire dinner table in a rough grip that night.

"I'll say. Definitely a drop in the amount of noise." Dan said back.

"Well, we'll have some more guests here soon enough." Kai cut in.

"Has anyone seen or heard from Alken? It's just not like him to be this late." Kazi finally burst out, slamming both of her hands onto the table in frustration.

"I'm sure he'll be here soon. I mean, its not exactly like its easy for a dragon-like suit of armor to hurry into a shop in the middle of the seaside of Kippernia and…" Dan said as a knock on the door interrupted him. All eyes went to the door, and in seconds, Kazi wretched open the door, and land a kick that sent the person on the other side flying across the street with a loud clang. Kazi ran after the downed individual, shrieking "ALKEN YOU TIN-CAN! I TOLD YOU TO TELL ME IF YOU WERE GOING TO BE LATE! YOU DISHONEST, LYING HUNK OF METAL!"

"H-honest Kazi, I just thought…"

"JUST THOUGHT! JUST THOUGHT IT WAS OKAY TO MAKE ME WORRY, HUH! JUST THOUGHT IT WAS ALRIGHT TO TAKE A BREAK AND NOT TELL ME THAT YOU WEREN'T GOING TO BE HERE **ON TIME**!"

"Kazi…I'm sorry…really…I didn't think you'd worry so much…"

"**DIDN'T THINK I'D WORRY! ****DIDN'T THINK I'D **_**WORRY!**_ WELL, NEWS FLASH, METAL-HEAD, PEOPLE DO WORRY WHEN YOU LEAVE THEM HANGING LIKE THAT!"

"Kazi, you know as well as I do that Alken couldn't have contacted you from where he was…" Jakku tried to calm the now-raging Kazi, but only succeeded in adding fuel to her fire.

"YOU KNEW WHERE HE WAS! YOU COULD HAVE TOLD ME HE WAS GOING TO BE LATE! BUT, AS USUAL, YOU DECIDED TO PLAY THE IRRESPONSIBLE ONE THAT KEEPS SO MANY SECRETS THAT EVEN YOU CAN'T REMEMBER ALL OF THEM! WHEN I'M DONE WITH YOU, YOU'LL WISH YOU WERE BACK IN YOUR GRAVE! YOU GOT ME! **BACK IN YOUR GRAVE!**"

"Kazi, please don't yell at him! It's my fault I was late; you can just chew me out!" Alken called, snapping Kazi's concentration away from the mortified zombie-teen. Kazi turned her head in his direction, and for a moment, Alken saw twin fires of anger lighting up her eyes, but the next second, Kazi threw her arms around his neck, wailing 'Don't ever do that again!'

Surprised as usual over Kazi's sudden switch of moods, all Alken could do was lightly hug her back as the others finally ventured closer.

"I take it she's stopped erupting?" Tigre said, earning him a sock in the stomach.

Kazi turned to the surprised spectators, and said into the stunned silence "Well, what are you all standing around out here for? Let's go back inside and enjoy dinner!"

* * *

So that's what a mood swing is like. Wow. I'll try to update more; I'm already working on the next chapter. Going as fast as I can. See ya later:)


	28. Chapter 28: Valley of the Dragons

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Don't really have much to say about my life. I got a summary up for this story. Tell me what you think. And see, I didn't kill Dragon or Jane!

Quote of the day:

"Panic, chaos, and disorder. My work here is done."- another awesome bleach gif that I can't remember the name of the creator for. Just search bleach avatars on photoshop, that's where I found it.

* * *

Chapter 28: Valley of the Dragons

"I don't get it! How long should it take to reach the center of the valley? Aren't dragons supposed to have large, open amounts of space?" Lightnose complained, much to the irritation of his fellow travelers. They had been walking through the snowy forest for hours, yet they had not seen a single living thing. Lightnose seemed to be let down by this, although he'd not exactly said it directly. The constant nagging was starting to really get to the other members of the party.

"Lightnose, for the last time, I don't know how long it will take; this valley could be the size of Kippernia for all we know! Now just cool down and enjoy the scenery or something!" Ahi finally snapped at the impatient dragon, who instantly stopped talking, but there was a noticeable stomp lingering in his step. Suddenly, a rustle from a nearby made them all stop in their tracks.

"Did you hear that?" Lightnose said into the silence.

Before any of them could react, their mysterious being decided to react for them. A dark shape jumped out of the bushes, startling the trio half out of their wits, before they realized it was just a squirrel.

"Okay, so there are other things here than just trees. Good to know." Ahi remarked into the stunned silence. Once they had gotten their pulses back under control, they journeyed on into the wintery woods. It was a ways in before they saw anything else that actually moved. They came right over a hill that overlooked a section of the valley, and were met with a promising sight. Below them were a collection of hot springs, large ones too. The threesome headed down for a chance to warm up, when they noticed some footprints near the larger springs.

"They look sort of like yours, Lightnose, but bigger."

"Yeah, guess this is a popular resting spot for the dragons here." Lightnose remarked as he tested his footprint against the ones in the snow. It was definitely bigger than him, that's for sure. But something was oddly familiar about this place, like he had been here before…Aww, who was he kidding? Lightnose shook of the nagging thought as he followed the others into the forest once more. Probably nothing… But, little did he know that one of the mysteries of his past was beginning to emerge.

Dragon looked out at the moon that hung in the sky, head tumbling with the events of the night. The different things that he had occurred were both ones to be glad about, and ones that deserved better description. Jakku and Bones seemed nice enough for guys that had the power of death itself locked within them. As for Ankoku and Itami, they were just about everything you'd expect in darkness incarnates. Something about Itami didn't sound too bad. When they were talking, there was an almost empty look in his eyes, a drag to his voice. It was like he was missing the ability to feel. Dragon was still slightly disbelieving on the fact that someone could make it seem like someone else's best friend was dead, and feel nothing. Not even the emotion Ankoku had shown: relish in what he was doing. No remorse or regret. Just enjoyment. It was sickening how much he did enjoy it. The very memory made him shudder. What it possible to enjoy making someone miserable that much? Dragon shook his head to force the thought out of his mind. No, never mind, scratch that. He didn't think he wanted to know.

"Ankoku? What do we do now? It's obvious he'll be on the lookout for us now."

"We don't need to worry about it."

"What?" Itami said, surprised. It was unlike Ankoku to let something like this go, especially when he had been so intent on this goal for weeks, maybe even months. "Aren't you the least bit disappointed that he will be harder to get than before? Or angry?"

"No, not at all. Now we have a dragon in the area that we have no more need of, and there are plenty of black-hearted souls in the village to use. All we must do is pick out a ripe one and save it until the time is right."

"You don't mean we're going to…?" Itami trailed off, not quite able to force out the answer.

"Yes, we eventually will. Why, is there a problem with it?"

"No." Itami replied, but in truth, he felt he had just been pulled into a painful dilemma. What they had done with the animals would be no different than what they were going to do with this dragon, but it felt different. It was cannibalism. There was no other way to put it. Even though Itami knew that Ankoku had sunk into a realm of darkness that was beyond all reason, he felt that he was the part that always would regret. It was uncanny. Now, even tonight, he had felt that nagging tug of his conscience pulling at his mind. No matter how much he tried to dull it, or pretend it wasn't, he soon found that a conscience was harder to get rid of than it looked. All he did was numb his emotions, because he thought it would help him escape. But, no matter where he went, no matter how long he tried, the tug was always there to remind him, along with the side-a-long flicker of regret or remorse.

One might ask why he was still friends with Ankoku, even after all he had put him through, and he would have to answer _because he was a kid like any other once_. Yes, hard as it was to believe, he had been a good friend, until Kurigari's darker sides caught up with the both of them. Because of the alarming rate at which they were losing Ankoku, the unspeakable truth became obvious: Itami and Ankoku would have to be separated by whatever means necessary. So, Itami was put in the Overworld, and Ankoku was kept in this one. Unfortunately, this only seemed to quicken the boy's descent into darkness. He became totally obsessed with power, and was willing to do whatever it took to get it. While Itami was lamenting over the loss of his friend in the Overworld, Ankoku was doing unspeakable things to achieve his ends. But, of course, his power would never be complete as a vessel of Kurigari without the dragon side of it, so he had to try to bring Itami back. He made friend with those other sealed, and had used them to get a portal that he could get through. They had let them pay the price. One had lost her arm, and one of the dragons sacrificed himself to save the other. He was later resurrected by the death sealed, along with the other two, but Itami would never forget the cries of his friend as they made off for the woods. They were the kinds that literally tore you up, and wretched out your heart.

Ankoku never treated Itami like he had before they were separated, either. If Itami failed in doing an order that Ankoku had given him, punishment was usually severe, and made sure he didn't mess up again. After a while he learned he'd have to just cope with the situation, and hope that maybe, just maybe, there would be some way to pull Ankoku out of the darkness.

Meanwhile, a little chipmunk ran through the undergrowth of a wintry forest. It turned into a warm cave and was about to head for a crack in the wall, when a large, brown, clawed paw made it dart in another direction. This paw belonged to a dragon named Nymr, and right now, he had more problems on his hands than a measly chipmunk. Food was becoming scarce in his section of the valley, and since he had not exactly been the nicest to his neighbors, they weren't eager to lend him a hand. He needed a new supply of food, and fast. He had smelled something, different on the air this morning as well: the scent of a young, male dragon. Nymr pulled back with a snort. Those males. Brought up by other dragons just to take him down.

Come to take his seat here, was he? Well, he'd just have to take him out, just like he had with the others who had come in the past. Nymr pulled back into the shadows of his cave. All he'd need to do is wait for the male to come to him, and then get rid of him.

* * *

"We're making good time." Haru called back, mostly to rejuvenate the duo behind him, who looked like they were going to drop right there. True, they had traveled through most of last night, stopping for only a couple hours. But that was on them, they had suggested it to get further ahead in less time. He didn't think they would get like _this_ after walking for about two hours.

_They just don't know their own limits yet._ He told himself for the fiftieth time that morning. It was the logical answer, but it was the reason that was beginning to wind him down. Lightnose was too tired to complain about the wait to see other dragons. Ahi, meanwhile, was just barely keeping place with the rest of the group. Haru sighed at the pitiful sight before him, and said "How about we stop for a few hours?" This brought on quite a grateful air. The two instantly lay (mostly dropped) down next to a large, old oak, and, within minutes, were fast asleep. Haru sighed and moved to his usual spot over their heads and remained there to keep watch for the rest of the afternoon. He looked around as the serenity of the sun, leaves, and other wonders of nature cooked up a wonderful feast for eyes, ears, and nose.

* * *

_Clank! Crash! _Jane swung viciously at the attack dummy, striking it to the point where it was spinning like a top. She almost turned to the forge to see how Alken was doing, but soon remembered that the sealed suit of armor was gone. He had said the night before that he would probably leave soon; she just didn't think he would go so suddenly. There was still so much she wanted to know, about the old legends, about these two that Alken had mentioned, (Ankoku and Itami, was it?) and the way he had managed to come back to life. Another thing that was bugging her was Dragon. He was usually flying in by now, giving her all kinds of confusing advice on how to dodge and from which directions to attack. The only other time that he had done this was when he'd given her that scare. When he'd… Jane, now eager to get her practice over with as soon as possible, swung all the more forcefully. Her eyes focused on the small, leather strap that hung from the back of the dummy. Carefully giving the dummy a sharp thwack with her practice sword, she made the rear spin in a clockwise motion, allowing her to reach out and snag the strap with her free hand. "Leaving so soon, Jane?" Sir Theodore asked as he watched his apprentice saddle up a horse. Since Smithy had been up late doing an errand for Sir Ivon, Jane just didn't have the heart to disturb him. "I was just going to go…visit someone…" she finished lamely, but, thankfully, Sir Theodore had already caught on. "Very well. I shall see you later this afternoon for you archery lesson." He said as he walked back into the practice yard. Jane let out a sigh as she pulled herself up onto the horse. Once she was firmly in the saddle, she headed out the gate and into the pathway that she knew lead to Dragon's mountain. As the horse moved smoothly along, the two failed to notice that they were being watched by a curious Hannashi. He pulled himself up onto a tree limb so he could see better. Yep, definitely her. There was no mistaking that red hair. The was she was going was all the more strange. The cave on the mountain probably. Jakku had been kind enough to stop by on give some good details about his fight with Ankoku and what he had been after. _Maybe its worth sticking around for…_ Hannashi thought as he stealthily slipped after the horse.

* * *

The shady old store, meanwhile, carried an almost unnatural air due to the arrival of its two newest visitors. For one, Kazi was now as mellow as a mountain stream, smiling like nothing had happened last night, and giving Alken occasional reprimands for not taking proper care of a particular piece of his armor as she straightened it out for him. Kai had become the unofficial director of household affairs. Julian was trying out a couple new techniques of molding on Alken's armor, and Dan, Tigre, and Jakku were all arguing about the other tenants of the afterlife and how they could hold onto a grudge. "Seriously, Jakku, has she finally moved on? I mean, it was resolved years ago! Give up on it already!" "Tell her that. Yvonne still thinks there might have been some mistake with the will, and now she won't let me hear the end of it!" "Did you tell her that the estate's gone anyway?" "I didn't even get to that. All she wanted to talk about was what was in that will. She made me recount every last detail!"

"By the way, Kai, when's Hannashi getting here?" Tigre asked, noticing that the half-blood in question had just entered the room.

"Look, I have no idea; he wasn't that specific. I'm sure he'll be here by the end of this week, though." "When Ahi and Lightnose come back, right?"

"Yep, when they come back."

"You sure this is a good idea? Sending a group of rookies in to find Shadow?" Dan asked, narrowing his eyes. Kai paused a moment before answering.

"I'm sure they will. Besides, Shadow will be on the lookout for them, and Kudos should be able to pick up on them right away."

All eyes were on Kai at the mention of the name 'Kudos'.

"What?"

"Weeellll…" Jakku stammered, not able to say exactly what was on his mind.

"He's sort of the skeptical type. How do you know he will actually go through with this?" Tigre finished.

"You know the old rule; every created sprite will recognize even so much as a trace of their maker. Since the two are vessels to Reki, Kudos won't be able to miss it. He won't pull anything, I'm sure of it." Kai replied as she turned and walked out.

* * *

"Are you sure that there are dragons here?" Lightnose said for the thirtieth time since they had started again. Ahi and Haru each concealed groans as they fought to not give an answer. Lightnose took the hint and remained quiet for the next couple feet.

"He does have a point." Ahi said out loud. Both turned to her, one exasperated, the other surprised. Ignoring their looks, Ahi continued.

"We haven't seen a single dragon since we got here. If this was really Dragon Valley, wouldn't we have at least gotten some signs of a dragon nearby?"

At the more explanative answer, Haru stopped and looked at their route thoughtfully.

"True.", He answered, "The thing we should probably be on the lookout for, especially at this time of year, would be older male dragons. Protecting their caves, and such." He added, catching their blank looks. When they still looked completely lost, he sighed, and said.

"A fight between males?"

Now they got it. Lightnose looked like he wanted to hightail it back home, and Ahi seemed to be stuck in a worried loop of thought over what might happen if they managed to get in the way of one of those fights by accident.

"Don't worry about it." Haru said, trying to calm them both down, "If we just avoid territories with those types in them, we should be fine. And besides, the faster we go, the faster we reach Shadow."

And with that, the threesome headed off deeper into the valley, unaware of the fact that they were heading into danger.

* * *

HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!! I got all of you with a foreshadowing! Now you have to wait until I give you the next chapter!! Hahahaha!


	29. Chapter 29: Unwilling Fighter

I don't own Jane and the Dragon

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Man, the stuff they use to numb your mouth before they pull teeth sure is strong. My upper jaw was numb for three hours straight. Anyhow, trying to speed things up a little, squeeze more stuff into a chapter and such. Try to get things really going. I also put up a summary for this story, but it's a little crappy, so, working on that too. Enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

Chapter 29: Unwilling Fighter

"Wow, sure gets dark fast here." Lightnose remarked as light began to fade from the treetops and the world around them slowly dissolved into shadow.

"I'll say." Ahi replied as the sun's descent finally reached the horizion, and the world around them descended into a dark and clear night.

There was a long silence as the group continued deeper for another hour into the shadowy gloom. Haru, being the more knowledgeable about the terrain, found the sleeping spot. The two lay down for the night, Lightnose putting his wing protectively over Ahi, like the routine was on those wilderness nights. But that routine was about to be shattered.

Late that night, while the two slept, and Haru was settling into a stasis(spirits need their rest too) for the night, a large shadow crept over to the sleeping threesome. Nymr was tired of waiting for his supposed challenger to come to him. He was going to take matters into his own hands. He approached the clearing where the scent was coming from. Instead of bluntly entering the clearing and risk his prey trying to make a getaway, he settled into a brush cover that was sure to hide him from the night. Once he was sure that none of them were awake, he moved cautiously out into the clearing. Yep, definitely out cold. Meaning this would be too easy.

He gave the young male a rough tap on the shoulder, rousing the other male into a state of semi-wakefulness.

"Haru? Ahi? Are we going already?" he murmured softly, raising his head. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he felt a sharp thud on the back of his neck, and all slowly slid out of focus as he fell to the ground, this time knocked out. Nymr gave a quiet chuckle as he headed off into the forest, dragging along his prize.

_I'll get back at those idiots for shunning me, and rejecting me when I asked for their help! I'll get back at them all! _He thought angrily as he lifted off, carrying the unconscious Lightnose in his claws.

_Huh?_ Ahi thought as she pulled herself up. It was bright, unusually bright. And cold. Usually Lightnose's wing blocked out the elements. Ahi looked around to see that Lightnose wasn't in the clearing. It wasn't like him to get up this early.

"Lightnose? Hey, where are you?" She called. No reply.

"Haru! Have you seen Lightnose?" she asked as she saw the green form of Haru rise from a gap in some roots nearby.

"Hmm? Not sure."

Ahi was about to say something else, when an array images flickered into her minds eye once more.

_A shadowy, large figure was dragging a smaller, limp figure in its claws. It set the smaller figure down on what looked like a cave floor. Light flickered over the fallen's face. It was Lightnose! The darker, larger shape came back, and struck him across the face. This seemed to bring him out of his stupor; he raised his head up and looked around to try and spot his attacker, but his attacker came to him instead. A large, scaled paw came down out of the gloom and slam him in the head. He fell backwards, reeling from the hit. The attacker came again, raising his paw up to bring down another hit…_

"Lightnose!" Ahi cried, snapping out of the trance.

"Ahi? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but Lightnose isn't. Haru, are there any caves around here? Big enough to hold at least one dragon?"

"I think there might be, but I'm not one-hundred percent sure…"

"Can you take me there?"

"Yes, but…"

"Okay, let's go." Ahi replied as she started off.

"Wait, Ahi, you're not letting me finish!" Haru cried as he hurriedly floated off after her. "I've heard that the cave in the area is home to a rouge dragon that will eliminate any competition that happens to get in his way!"

"All the more important that we get there as fast as we can. Now lead."

"How do you know that Lightnose is even there? He could be in an entirely different cave for all we know!"

"I just do. Can you show me how to get there?"

There was a long pause, then Haru reluctantly answered.

"Alright. But let's not rush into this, okay?"

"If we don't find Lightnose."

"Okay."

Then the two set off on the trail of their missing friend.

* * *

Meanwhile, Dragon was battling his own enemy. His nightmares. But, this time, he knew it wasn't from any ancient spirits. It was his own memories of the encounter with Ankoku and Itami that seemed to keep running through his head like a horror film. He happened to be right in the middle of one of his hourly flashbacks of the events of the night before, Dragon heard someone call him. He shot up just in time to see Jane enter the cave.

"Dragon? Are you alright?" She asked, noting that her friend looked like he had gotten barely any sleep.

"I'm fine." He answered, forcing a grin onto his face. Thoughts like _Should I tell her? _began to run through his mind. They never kept secrets. But, then again, he didn't want to scare her. She was already worried about him because of the issue with the livestock; he didn't need her to be upset over this too. Speaking of which…

"So, do they still think I'm the one killing off the livestock?"

"I think they've calmed down a bit, but just for now, don't go near the village, or any of the farms."

"How about some cloud-jousting?" he asked, trying to calm the tense mood down. Resigning herself to the fact that her friend just didn't want to talk about it, Jane pulled herself up onto his back as Dragon pulled up, walked out of the cave, and sprang up into the bright sunshine that seemed to wipe away all doubts from their minds.

* * *

"Ahi, this is crazy."

"I know."

"We should go back. Get someone who can help."

"I know."

"Are you going to actually listen to what I'm saying?"

"No."

There was a long pause as the two continued to slowly ascend the rocky slope that Haru said led up to the cave. Ahi knew that this was the right one, and she was ignoring all of Haru's suggestions to go back. Haru, meanwhile, was following dutifully behind, when he got an idea.

"Ahi, wait."

"What now?"

"I know that Shadow can probably reason with the dragon that lives here. I know it will take too long for us to go together, but if I went alone, I could be there and back in a heartbeat. Shadow and me will be back before you know it!" And with that, before she could stop him, Haru merged into the ground and became a bolt of green, shooting down the hill at breakneck speed. Ahi let out a sigh, wondering if she was being helped or being ditched. Resigning herself to the fact that their group would be one less short for the rest of this detour, she continued her ascent up the mountain slope.

Lightnose, meanwhile, was wishing he could be just about anywhere but the position he was in at the moment. These wishes were constantly being repeated over and over as a clawed paw came slamming down into his chest repeatedly. He caught himself and dodged to avoid another volley of hits. He tried to scramble for the exit, but the dragon that had kidnapped him, blocked him off with a hit to his face. Lightnose reeled back as the dragon pinned him to the floor and was about to hit him again when a scuttling noise out on the outcropping in front of the cave made them both stop in their tracks.

Once he was sure that it must have been some loose rocks, Nymr went back to pounding poor Lightnose into the cave wall.

"Why don't you fight?" he yelled in frustration as Lightnose feebly tried to block the next barrage of hits.

"I told you, I'm not looking for a fight! I'm just passing through!"

"Now I'm sure I don't believe you." Nymr hissed through gritted teeth, anger and pent-up frustration that had been bottled up for years come spilling out, all over the unfortunate Lightnose. Somewhere in between the hits, a bold and determined voice cried

"ENOUGH!!"

Both dragons looked into the cave entrance to see an extremely pissed-off Ahi, glaring at Nymr as if she'd like to throw him into the deepest depths of the underworld and leave him there to burn for eternity. They didn't get long to observe her facial expression, for she charged at Nymr, jumped up, and gave him a pretty hard kick smack across his face. This dazed him for a moment or two, and Ahi used this precious time to yell to Lightnose.

"Hurry up and make a break for the exit!!"

Lightnose tried to obey, but Nymr blocked the exit, a vengeful look crossing his face. Without warning, he grabbed Ahi by the leg, and tried to fling her into the wall, but Lightnose managed to catch her before she could so much as brush the wall.

"Next time, your little friend won't be there to catch you." Nymr remarked, and Lightnose flew at him, trying to sink his teeth into his arm. Nymr was too fast for him, however, and threw him to the ground with ease. This went on for about another twenty minutes, resulting in many bumps and bruises for the twosome.

When it finally looked like they were going to be overpowered by Nymr, a jet of green fire shot between them. They looked into the entrance once more to see a large, stormy-black dragon with green eyes, beside which stood the grinning Haru.

"Told you I could be there and back in a couple minutes." He said, still grinning.

"Shadow! Stay out of this! It's none of your business!" Nymr called.

"Oh, it isn't? I was under the impression that these two were going to visit me when you happened to intercept them. Technically, it _is _my business." Shadow shot back "Now, we can do this the easy way, where I just take my guests and go, or I can fight you, and I can guarantee that you won't walk away unscathed if we happen to go that way." Shadow's words seemed to have an affect on Nymr, who began to think twice about his challenge.

"Alright. Take them. Just make sure that they don't come back here, or I won't be so lenient."

"Right. Come along, you two." Shadow nodded curtly to the two battered friends, who took the hint and rushed over to join the two by the cave entrance. As soon as Shadow got things smoothed down, he joined them out on the rock outcropping.

"Are we going to walk?" Lightnose asked.

"Not if you can fly. Can you?"

"Er, sort of."

"Good. Then you should have no trouble. Your friend can ride with you." Shadow added, causing Ahi to look at Lightnose like he had just developed the plague. Gingerly, she pulled herself up onto his back, and he nervously sprang into the air. At first, Lightnose wasn't doing so great with keeping up, but Shadow pulled back to give him some tips.

"Extend your wings fully. Don't try to cut through the air, ride it."

Landing, was…well… lets just say that Shadow's not going to have to worry about those trees out in front of his cave anymore. As they entered the cave, it was obvious that Shadow didn't really have a sense of organization. Things lay in cluttered heaps, and in one nook, there was a grate where a purplish- silver ball of what looked like energy sat, shimmering away.

"Why don't you take a seat by the grate? It's the best spot in the whole cave." Shadow advised as he moved towards the back of the cave. "Be back in a minute."

The two settled down next to the grate, and Ahi began to stare absentmindedly at the small sphere. Suddenly, she sat up and looked at it more closely. _Did it just wink?_

"Something wrong?" Lightnose asked, noticing the sudden jump that Ahi made as she saw the movement.

"You mean you didn't see? It just..."

Lightnose looked down into the sphere, and it winked at him. He flinched back, and both of them began to stare at the sphere to see if it would wink again. But, to their surprise, it didn't wink. _It spoke._

"Okay, okay, you can stop now. You're beginning to creep me out." The sphere said, sounding more annoyed than anything. "It was just a joke."

Now that the two got a good look, they saw two purple eyes, and a small silver line that was the mouth. As the sphere talked, the line would become an oval, or another shape, depending on what he was saying. In this case, it was set into an indignant pout.

"Who, or what are you?"

"I am an energy sprite named Kudos." The being said, waving around whip-like strands of silver; probably the arms, or some type of limb.

"I see you guys have met my cave mate." Shadow remarked as he came up from the depths of the cave, carrying some odd looking stones. Then, as the two watched, he used his tongue to ease a chunk into his mouth. He promptly swallowed, then caught the stunned look Lightnose was giving him.

"Some dragons don't need marble to fly and make fire, others do." He said, to explain what that was all about. When the barrage of blank stares continued, he added:

"Yes, that was marble, and yes, I did just eat it. It helps produce my kind of fire." He emphasized this point with a quick blast of green flames.

"I thought that dragon fire was just any old ordinary fire, just stronger." Ahi said, and Shadow shook his head with a chuckle.

"Fire is fire, but there is a, different, kind of fire in a dragon's breath can burn longer, and do more damage. But different types of dragon's bring their own types of fire, hence the many varieties you find if you look around here."

"By the way…" Kudos cut in, addressing Ahi, since Lightnose was too absorbed in this talk of dragon fire to be disturbed, "You're energy-elementals, aren't you?"

"I guess."

"Energy elementals are pretty few and far between. There's only been about two in the past century, and even they weren't able to unlock energy's full potential. Only Reki was able to do that."

"Reki was the guardian of energy himself, right?"

"Yep."

"But if he was sealed into a dragon and half-blood, so…" Ahi trailed off, lost in thought. Kudos didn't reply. Maybe she was figuring it out… But then both trains of thoughts were interrupted by Lightnose asking Shadow about what his fire would look like.

"Well, it depends. What does energy look like?" he asked. Lightnose broke off to think about that one.

"Taking from him, I'd say energy is a, silver-ish purple color? Am I right?"

"You've got good eyes." Kudos replied, apparently a yes.

"And you'll be able to test that theory. Kai did send a message ahead that I was to get you breathing energy fire," Shadow said, pointing to Lightnose, "and you projecting energy." He finished, pointing at Ahi. The two were struck dumb once more as Shadow clapped his paws together, with a "Then let's get to it." and walked back to the deeper parts of the cave. Lightnose and Ahi hesitated for a couple minutes before following.

* * *

I'm going to try to get a song into the next chapter. Either way, I'd like to hear what you have to say, so review away! I'll try to update faster! :)


	30. Chapter 30: New Friends, New Sights

I don't own Jane and the Dragon

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Life has been okay; I haven't dropped down from anxiety yet. Quiz after quiz…School is hurting my brain! Make it stop!

Anyhow, sorry I haven't updated. School, lack of sleep, and thoughts that jump the gun are slowing me up a bit. Saw 'Dragonphobia'. It was the kind of episode that had a really dramatic spin. Poor Dragon...Must be tough when your best friend says that she hates you. You'll know what I'm talking about if you've seen the episode. Oh, and I also don't own the song 'Flight of Dragons'. Just search it on Youtube if you want to hear the audio, it's a very mesmerizing song, believe me.

Quote of the day:

Jester: What? Is it that bog-awful?

Jane: Umm, no, not that bad…

Dragon: Worse. It was wrenchingly awful. Pass-me-the-bucket-and-stand-back-awful.

Jane and the Dragon: Strawberry Fool. You know the part where they're listening to the time-choked puppet performance Jester makes.

* * *

Chapter 30: New Friends, New Sights

A couple days later, and both friends were caught in the midst of training. Lightnose was working with Shadow to figure out what triggered energy fire. Ahi meanwhile, was working with Kudos on energy projection. But when the two had learned all they could, both teachers said "That's it. You're on your own." But Shadow had one last bit of wisdom to impart.

"There's a song that some elves sing on lonely nights, especially when they see a flock of dragons. It's also a popular bedtime lullaby here for younglings. It has a certain value, I guess. I think it might help you two out."

He took a deep breath, and began:

_Flight of dragons _

_Soar in the purple light_

The song was spellbinding, right from the second it started. Shadow also had a good voice, which added to the melody of the song.

_In the sky _

_Or in my mind_

The two listened with rapt interest as Shadow continued

_Flight of dragons _

_Sail past reality  
Leave illusion behind…_

Shadow stopped and the duo looked at him in expectation.

"Well, isn't there more?" Lightnose asked impatiently.

"There is more, but I think the two of you should be focusing on energy a bit more than a youngling's lullaby. Tell you what. I tell you the rest later if you can get somewhere close to your goals now."

The two instantly agreed to the bargain, and went off in their separate directions. Lightnose went to one end of the clearing to try to get a good burst of flame, and Ahi went to the other end to try to get at least one flicker of energy. At first, there was nothing, both of them were getting frustrated. Ahi leaned up against the nearest tree to try to marshal her thoughts, and Lightnose pounded the ground with his tail in frustration.

_Why can't I get it?! Shadow makes it look so easy! There's got to be something I'm missing. _Lightnose thought. Then he happened to notice Ahi. _Appears I'm not the only one frustrated._

He came closer, wondering if she was just as frustrated as he was. But, to his surprise, she was humming the tune of the song that they had heard a half hour ago!

"What're you doing?" he asked, now a bit more worried that her sanity was what had been frustrated, but Ahi only raised her head, and replied

"Trying to not go to pieces like you did. It's a very nice song, and it's kind of stuck in my head right now."

Lightnose was silent for a moment or two.

"Hey, Ahi?"

"Yes?"

"Can you sing that song? Out loud?"

"_Flight of dragons _

_Soar in the purple light_

_In the sky_

_Or in my mind_

_Flight of Dragons_

_Sail past reality_

_And leave illusion behind."_

Lightnose relaxed, and as he did, he felt an unfamiliar feeling work its way into his mouth. He let out an exhale that produced a small, but visible stream of purplish-silver fire blew across the ground. For a moment, both were stunned, then Lightnose snapped out of it with a shout of 'I did it! I did it! Did you see that? I did it!'

Ahi could only sit in silence while Lightnose jumped around like a giddy football fan when his home team wins the championships. She was a little curious about how he had managed to do it only after he had heard the song. Was the song the key to energy fire or something? No, wait, there had to be something else. Sure the song was relaxing, but that didn't mean… Then it hit her. Relaxing. That was it! Something had to relax in order for him to release energy fire!

"You're close, but you've missed something."

Ahi turned swiftly to see Kudos gliding near the base of the tree.

"How'd you know that's what I was thinking?" Ahi asked. Kudos chuckled and replied.

"You obviously don't know your sprite lore very well. No matter how crudely we were made, energy sprites have many qualities, one of which is telepathy."

"Speaking of sprites, where did Haru go?"

"He went back to the forest. He's an earth sprite. It's where they're more comfortable. You'll probably see him on your way back."

"Oh, so, you were saying about the fire?"

"Well, I'm not much for giving hints, but I might as well tell you anyway. The relaxation is only part of it. It's mostly what goes on in the mind that really triggers it."

"What do you mean?"

"Energy is made up of those three main types, spiritual, mental, and physical. Each of these plays a role in energy-based matter, like the energy fire. When Lightnose relaxed, so did his mind, allowing some mental energy to slip through. That's what made that short burst. But I think he needs a more potent source in order to get a real fire going. Then again, the first time's always the toughest." Kudos said before he hovered off into the direction of the cave, leaving Ahi alone with her thoughts.

* * *

Lightnose, meanwhile, was looking through the bushes, all fluster gone. He was now thrown into the most vicious, cruel, and unnatural world that eventually everyone faces: fitting in. Just beyond him was a crowd of dragons about his size.

_What do I do? What do I say? Alright, calm down. You can do this…_ he thought as he quietly moved out of the bushes. He tried to move down to the water, past the group, but he tripped over a rock and slid right into the water. He looked up just in time to hear "Loser."

Disheartened, Lightnose dejectedly pulled himself up out of the water, and moved to leave, tripped over a log, and went sprawling into a nearby tree, causing a couple small branches to come down on his head. (A/N: It's funny how when you try to be careful or cool, you end up being a klutz instead. Like reverse physiology.) The flurry of laughter from the other dragons further downed Lightnose's pride, as he pulled himself up over the log, and slumped down next to the tree, wanting to disappear right then and there.

"Are you okay?" a voice asked from somewhere over his head. He looked up to see a turquoise dragon standing over him, looking down with concern in her eyes. Probably the effect of having someone look at you like you just grew another head, but he instantly felt a hot feeling creep into his face. Lucky thing those branches were there, or she might have seen him blushing.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." He replied, pulling himself up.

"Good. Oh, and don't worry about them. Just be you. And if they don't like that, then they aren't your friends. What's your name anyway?"

"Lightnose."

Her eyes lingered for a moment on the silver patch on his nose. "Nice name. It suits you." She answered. "Say, do you want to take a flight with me?"

Lightnose was now caught between two decisions. Go on a flight and embarrass himself again, or simply refuse the opportunity to make friends. His silence seemed to intensify the curiosity of the other dragon for a moment, but then a knowing look crossed her face.

"Wait, are you a first-time flyer? Just started flying?"

"Yes." Came the reluctant answer.

"Why didn't you just say so? I can help you get your wings."

"It's not that I can't fly! I can! It's just all, messed up…" Lightnose trailed off. Now he was sure she could see him blushing. Thankfully, though, she didn't ask anymore. She just said:

"Well, come on up and fly with me, and I'll help you with what you're shaky on."

Lightnose came forward, and the two took off into the sapphire blue sky.

"By the way, I never got your name."

"My name is Verina." The turquoise dragon replied as the two soared through the gentle winds.

* * *

Ahi was still trying to focus on what her trigger might be. Racking her brain, she tried once more to summon the energy that usually came without trouble, but to make it substance seemed like something far beyond her realm of understanding.

_You have to open your eyes, of course._

"Huh, who's there?"

_Just me. I want to help. Just do as I say._

"Alright."

_Think of the moon, the stars, shadows, mist, and wind. Open your eyes, hear what they have to say._

Ahi focused entirely, closing her eyes. But, as she did, it was like another pair of eyes opened. She could see vibrancy in everything. It was like everything had a pulse, a flow. The rocks, plants, and dirt all had a lively green glow to them, water was a cool blue, if there was fire around, it would have been a sparkling red. Ahi looked up, and let out a gasp. _She could see the wind_. The wind was an energetic gray, dashing in and out of the trees, and streaking across the sky. Looking around, she realized that other things were now visible. Shadows were a serene silver, with some nonchalant purple streaks here and there. She looked at her armored hand, and realized with a start that it was the same color as the shadows and wind, with the occasional hazy blue thrown in here and there.

_Impressive, no? _Ahi looked around, and this time caught from where the being was speaking. Her own shadow had taken on the silhouette of a large dragon. Even though the rest of the figure was shrouded in darkness, the eyes were visible. Large, purplish-silver eyes. Eyes that seemed to be weighed down with sadness, pain, misery, and anger all at the same time. There was also something about it that said that these feelings had been there for awhile. Like they had been weathered into the being by the waves of time.

"It wonderful…" Ahi replied, and her voice made a funny echoing sound, like she was talking from the depths of a very long tunnel.

_What you see is energy itself, flowing through everything. When you control something like water, you are not controlling it, but merely the energy that flows through it. The other forces of nature can only control the one force that they are endeared to. We, on the other hand, can do what they do, only not as good. What you are trying to, make it appear in its original form, no added element involved, is easier when you can see it. But, after you get more experienced, you won't even need this sight. _

"Sight?"

_Yes. We have many sights. Each allows us a different way of seeing the unseen. _

Ahi suddenly felt light-headed. She held her head as the colors around her began to swirl. Augh! Turn the whirlwind off!

_It's your first time, so you wear out quickly. You will be able to endure more as you get more experienced, but, for now, you will need to close your eyes. _

Ahi did as she was told, and felt an almost lowering of awareness. When she opened her eyes again, she found that everything had gone back to the way it was.

"Hey, are you still there?" Ahi called. When no one replied, she headed off toward the cave for a much-needed break.

* * *

"So, is something wrong, Dragon?" Jane asked. He had been a little tense ever since they had flown over a barren area of the land.

"Oh, umm, nothing. Everything's alright." He answered, not convincing his rider one bit.

"Dragon, if something is wrong…"

"I can come to you and talk about it. Yes, I know."

There was a long silence, during which Dragon wondered if what he had said was too blunt. His mind went back to a day about a week after he met Jane.

"_You can fly, can't you?"_

"_Of course I can. Look at me. I am a dragon! I can fly!"_

"_Sorry. So, want to fly now?"_

"_Now? Right now?"_

"_Yes. You just said you can fly, right?"_

"_Yes, I suppose I could."_

_A little later…after a successful flight._

"_WAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGHHHH!!"_

_**Thud.**_

"_I thought you said you knew how to fly!" _

"_I do! I just have a problem landing, that's all."_

"_Why didn't you say anything?"_

"_I thought you'd laugh." He replied in a low tone, like the kind someone uses when they're embarrassed or ashamed. He waited for a couple minutes, to see if Jane would laugh, but he looked to see her looking at him with a half-amused, half-exasperated look._

"_I would never laugh at you. You don't have to be scared of that. I'll help you land right." _

But would she be so understanding with something as big as this?

He was also too late to cover up the scratches and sore spots from last nights fight, and Jane had just noticed a particularly large scratch on his neck.

"Where did you get that?" she asked, concerned.

"If I told you it was from a particularly bad landing, would you believe me?" Dragon said with a weak smile. (A/N: I love lines like that. Had to put this in.)

Jane's stern look told him that no, she would not believe him.

"I'll tell you about it later." Dragon murmured in a low voice. Jane did not press any further, partly because of the tone Dragon had used, and partly because of the fact that, now she looked, all along his back were a collection of scratches, like he had been in some kind of fight. She sighed lightly and hung on for the rest of the flight. Just another thing that they would have to work out.

* * *

Shadow came out of the cave just in time for Lightnose to come barreling down out of the sky like an out-of-control airplane. He crashed in the clearing, slid right into a tree, and then straightened up just in time to give a wave to a small figure in the sky. Shadow looked up after the shape, realized it was a dragon, and a knowing look crossed his face. Without another thought, he motioned for Lightnose to follow him into the cave.

Surprisingly enough, Ahi was already there.

"What kept you?"

"Oh, nothing. Just had to meet someone."

"Ah."

"So, since both of you did make some progress today, I guess I have to tell the rest of the lyrics, right?"

"I believe that was the deal." Kudos replied from his place in the nook. Lightnose and Ahi both nodded vigorously.

"Well, here it is

_Is it the past I see  
When I look up to the heavens  
Believing in the magic  
That I know could never be_

_I want to go where they are going  
Into the world they've been  
Can I open up my mind enough to see_

_Flight of dragons, heavenly argosies  
Catch the wind, rise out of sight  
Flight of dragons, pilots of fantasy  
In the sky or in my mind_

_Flight of dragons…  
Flight of dragons…"_

It was a spell binding several minutes. The words of the song were still enchanting; no matter how many times they heard it. The words together seemed to form a spell, one of the mesmerizing beauty of flight.

Each of them pulled off to go to sleep that night, each thinking their own thought, but Lightnose's was mainly on his new friend.

* * *

Aww, dragon fluff! How cute! Let me know what you think! I will try to update as soon as the plague of quizzes and tests goes down. See you all later! :)


	31. Chapter 31: Sky Dancing

I don't own Jane and the Dragon or 'Into the Night' by Sakana(You know, the song we've been hearing on the radio a lot lately?) Life is...tiring. Just...want...to...sleep...Zzzzzzz...

* * *

Chapter 31: Sky Dancing

The next night, Lightnose said he would be out for most of the evening. No one thought it was just for flight lessons, no matter how hard he denied it. Kudos was the one who gave him the hardest time, while Ahi and Shadow accepted it quietly.

"Good luck with you-know-who!" Kudos called in a lovey-dovey voice. Lightnose gave him a look that quite clearly said 'okay, the joke is getting old', and Ahi called after him.

"Have fun. Get as much information as you can on how to land, will you?"

"Sure." He replied, flashing her a grateful smile for not implying what Kudos was. He then went out to meet Verina. He found her right next to the lake where they had met the day before.

_Like a gift from the heavens, it was easy to tell,  
It was love from above, that could save me from hell, _

_She had fire in her soul it was easy to see,  
how the devil himself could be pulled out of me_

"Ready to go?" She asked as he approached.

"Yeah. Let's do it." And with that, the two reptiles took off into dazzling spirals as they climbed higher and higher into the sky, and off into the night.

Lightnose knew that it was rude, but he caught himself, several times, staring at Verina. _What's going on? _Even he wasn't a hundred percent sure, but there were definitely some very rambunctious butterflies swooping around his in his stomach.

_There were drums in the air as she started to dance,  
Every soul in the room keeping time with their hands,  
And we sang…_

He thought that she did catch him once, but if she did, she chose to ignore it. While she was scanning the ground below, she happened to catch a series of rock canyons and trenches below. She threw Lightnose a mischievous glance, and called 'Hope you're good at maneuvering!' before diving down into the canyons. Lightnose, more adventurous now, dove in after her.

_Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
And the voices rang like the angels sing,  
And singing…  
Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
And we danced on into the night,_

Now, although you do things to look cool or impressive, sometimes people do get cold feet at the last moment. Lightnose was no stranger to this, and pulled up a bit before he could sail right into the canyon. Verina, realizing that he wasn't with her, rose up again to give him some confidence.

_Ay oh ay oh,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
And we danced on into the night_

"A few words of advice, don't loose focus, always keep all the rocks a couple feet away, don't be surprised by any sudden breezes, and relax!"

She dropped back into the wilds of the canyon, this time with Lightnose following close behind. At first, he was hesitant on getting as close as Verina, probably because he wasn't entirely sure just how long a foot was. Also, he was too busy watching how Verina flew the canyons, riding the wind like she was the breeze itself. It was flawless. Perfectly flawless. Maybe he could pick up some pointers. He tried to do what she was doing, only to end up almost flying into a rock structure head-on. He heard Verina give a gentle laugh as he pulled away, more determined to get it right. On his next drop, he managed to avoid the rocks, not nearly fall into a group of trees, and avoid crashing into the side of the canyons.

Confidence boosted by his success, he joined Verina in a steady climb through the sky. Once they got high enough, they began to barrel down into a straight drop.

_Like a piece to the puzzle that falls into place,  
You could tell how we felt from the look on our faces,  
we was spinning in circles with the moon in our eyes,_

The two were directly over a lake that seemed to be dazzled with the light from the stars and the moon. The dragons' reflections were cast into it, and Lightnose had to admit, they did look good together. They really looked good up there in the sky. Guess this was what Shadow was talking about, when he mentioned riding the wind. It was like he wasn't even flapping, he was floating on the wind itself.

"Hey! Wanna try to ride the gales?" Verina called.

"Wait, gales?" He replied, but Verina didn't hear. She was too busy diving downward once more. He tried to follow her, but instantly hit a huge gust of wind that sent him sprawling. He pulled out of the gales to steady himself, then looked for Verina, but she was nowhere to be seen.

"Whatcha doing, Lightnose? The gales are down there." Verina called as her head suddenly popped up in front of his. He almost fell out of the air in shock.

"Are sure that's safe?" He asked uncertainly.

"No, but if you ever want to be a good flyer, you might as well give it a try." She answered, not alleviating his worries at all, but it gave him courage to try.

_No room left to move in between you and I,  
We forgot where we were and we lost track of time,  
And we sang to the wind as we danced through the night,  
And we sang…_

He dove back in, this time bracing himself for the violent winds. This time though, it wasn't as bad as it had been when he hadn't been prepared. He barreled through the wind, followed by a surprised Verina.

"Hey, wait up!" she called as Lightnose shot ahead. Then, realizing where he was headed, she yelled "Lightnose, LOOK OUT!!"

He looked dead ahead just in time to get clothes lined by an overhang. Hitting the ground with a loud thud, he lay there for a couple seconds, in a daze.

"Lightnose!! Lightnose!! Are you okay?! Say something!!" Verina cried as she landed next to the winded dragon.

"I'm…okay…" he managed to gasp. "Just…a little short on air…"

"Don't scare me like that! I thought you had seriously hurt yourself! You are okay, right?"

"Oh, just dandy! Clothes lined by a pile of rocks! How about that flight?" Lightnose joked as he pulled himself up. Verina laughed in response.

_Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
And the voices rang like the angels sing,  
And singing…  
Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
And we danced on into the night,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
Ay oh ay oh,_

Within minutes the two were up in the air again, laughing and having a grand old time.

* * *

Meanwhile, Dragon was stuck with the prospect of telling Jane exactly what had happened over the last week or so (leaving out Bones and Jakku, considering that they told him not to tell anyone anyhow). Jane had chosen the tower, far away from prying ears, and demanded to know what was going on with him, and where he had gotten those scratches and cuts. Needless to say, what Dragon had predicted would happen, well, did happen.

"If something was wrong, you could have told me!" she cried, taking in the suddenly blatantly-obvious cuts, bruises, and one very nasty-looking slash mark on his hand. "And you got hurt. Badly. We should clean that." She added, indicating the latter.

"I don't need it cleaned! I'm fine!" Dragon protested as Jane's hand brushed the cut, making it sting. He winced.

"Dragon, please…Let me help…" she consoled, calming Dragon long enough for her to get a wet cloth and dab at the slash gently. He flinched as the cloth made the cut sting, but did not gripe about it this time. It was nice to have told her what was on his mind, and not be alone. Jane, meanwhile, had finished cleaning up the wound, and sat by his head, softly stroking his head, soothing him into a light doze. When she was sure he was asleep, she tip-toed quietly down the stairs of the tower, careful not to wake him.

_I just hope he will be alright._ She thought as she headed down to her room to get some sleep herself.

* * *

"YEEEEHAAA!!" Lightnose called, as he dove out of the sky, followed by a whooping Verina.

"See, you're not bad. All you needed was some confidence." She praised, and Lightnose felt a blush creep into his face.

"I'm sure other dragons are better flyers than me." He murmured, trying to get some of the spotlight off him.

"Sure, there might be, but I've never seen someone that enthusiastic to be in the air before." She replied, giving him an its-okay-to-be-happy-about-it type grin.

_And we danced on into the night,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
And we danced on into the night,_

"Thanks." Lightnose said, watching night progress on the ground below. The night had never been so enchanting. He was now aware of every little detail on the ground below. Every little thing, you name it, he could see it. Verina, catching his eyes, spoke.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" She asked. He nodded in reply.

"Hey, Lightnose, where did you come from?"

Lightnose flinched, and then decided that telling a bit wouldn't hurt. They landed just outside of a forest.

"Out of the valley."

"So you're not from here?"

"No."

"Then where are you from?" She prodded.

"Err…"

"From this continent?"

"No."

"Are you even from this world?"

"Errr…"

"Yes or no?"

"Will you tell anyone?"

"No."

"Then no, I'm not from this world."

At that, Verina gave him a look that clearly said 'Are you sure?'.

"I'm not joking. What I just said was true. Completely true."

"So, are you eventually going to leave, or will you be staying?"

There. That was the one question that Lightnose wasn't ready to answer. So, he decided to avoid it. He sprang up into the air with a call of:

"C'mon! We're wasting moonlight! Let's go!"

Verina sighed as she followed him. When he was ready to tell, he'd tell. All she'd have to do is be patient. But for now, the two laughed and whooped in excitement as they soared through the air.

_Like a gift from the heavens, it was easy to tell,  
It was love from above, that could save me from hell, She had fire in her soul it was easy to see,  
how the devil himself could be pulled out of me, _

_There were drums in the air as she started to dance,  
Every soul in __the room keeping time with their hands,  
And we sang…  
_

* * *

Jakku jumped from building to building in Kippernia. About time he got out of the house, it was beginning to get unbearable in there. Kazi was cooking dinner, and, as usual, he thanked any god or goddess that he was dead, or _he_ would be on the receiving end of a glob-covered spoon, taken straight from Kazi's cooking pot.

And, as an added bonus, he couldn't find Bones. The zombie dragon was just nowhere to be found. He had already checked the river. Sakana had just said that he only told her he was going to go visit someone. Who, though? He didn't know anyone around here. Or did he? Maybe he found Hannashi, Kaijin, and Tsuin? Likely, but he would have probably said something if it was them. So, that might not be it… But then, who was it?

Jakku gave a grunt of frustration as he ducked a flock of birds that happened to be flying in low over head. Even though he knew that the people below couldn't see him, he wasn't willing to take any chances in something else running into him or getting something on him that would give him away.

He was also very curious of the new vessel that Kai, Kazi, and the others mentioned. Could they really contain a spirit as powerful and as raging as Reki? If they couldn't, they'd have one more out-of-control guardian to take care of. Not a nice prospect. Not a nice prospect at all. Just hearing the old stories were enough to make him shudder. What he had heard about Reki alone was enough to give anyone the willies. Several whole villages and two kingdoms in one night was no mean feat. Even for a guardian. All the more baffling was the radical change in him. From depressed and distant to a raging behemoth in about a day. Something definitely seemed wrong with that picture. Could it have something to do with…?

Jakku's train of thought was interrupted by a pulse of some kind. Bones's? No, too potent. Bones was cautious; he would have kept things like that hidden. It was pretty raw, too. Not that experienced, but it was powerful. Very powerful. But what was it?

Then, as fast as it had come, it was gone, and Jakku was left wondering on the mysterious phenomenon.

_Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
And the voices rang like the angels sing,  
And singing…  
Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
And we danced on into the night,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
And we danced on into the night,  
(And the voices rang like the angels sing),  
Ay oh ay oh,  
Ay oh ay oh,  
_

Meanwhile, Dragon was waking up from another odd dream. Not frightening, just odd. It had been all about two dragons, flying in some unknown sky that looked like it was miles away from here. He was about to dismiss it as just a weird dream and go back to sleep, when he heard someone say

"I honestly can't say I envy you. Those don't look too fun."

He shot up to see Bones perched on the tower, taking in all of the war wounds Dragon had managed to acquire when he was fighting Itami.

"Course, I can't get too badly wounded, being dead and all, but memories do help serve the purpose in the real thing's absence."

"Isn't someone going to see you?" Dragon asked, casting a careful eye on the rest of the castle.

"I doubt it. Nobody sees me unless I want them to see me. Otherwise, I'm practically invisible. So, how're you doing?"

"Fine, I guess."

"You know, you did do the right thing. Sometimes things are too heavy to carry on your own, you know?"

"I suppose so."

"Nice night, isn't it?" Bones remarked. Indeed it was. Crisp and clear, you could see every star in the sky just by looking up. The stars twinkled as Bones told Dragon about a couple constellations, and where they were in that expanse.

"That one there, right there, is Taurus, the bull. You can find him if you just look for his eye."

"What's so special about his eye?"

"It's that really bright star right there. See it?"

"Yes, I can see it! Right there!"

Bones laughed as Dragon enthusiastically pointed out the constellation.

"Okay, here's one I'm sure you'll love. Draco, the dragon. He's looks like this." Bones directed as he sketched out the gathering of stars into the flagstone. "And he should be about, there!" He pointed up, toward the center of the sky. Dragon followed his claw to see an exact replica of what Bones had scratched into the stone, but this time, it was imprinted on the sky. It was a simplistic little line, but in its own way, it had elegance and form. Dragon could barely suppress a grin

"It's great, Bones. Bones?" He asked, noticing the distracted look on the other dragon's face.

"Sorry, Dragon, might have to cut this little star-gazing session short; Jakku's calling me."

"Oh, alright." Dragon replied, slightly disappointed.

"See you around!" Bones called as he took off through the air. Dragon watched him go, then turned an eye up to the stars for a second before settling back down.

_Didn't know there was so much stuff up there…_ was his last thought as he slipped off once more.

* * *

_And we danced on into the night,  
Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
(Ay oh ay oh),  
Ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
(Ay oh ay oh),  
Singing ay oh ay oh ay oh ay,  
(Ay oh ay oh),  
And we danced on into the night… _

Lightnose laughed as he came down near his cave with Verina on his tail. The two were in a full-scale dive, plummeting down through the sky. At the last second, Verina pulled out of the dive, and Lightnose made a perfect landing right in front of the cave entrance. After a couple seconds to register what had just happened, he turned, and gave a wave and a thumbs-up to the dragon that was hovering in the air. With a loop-de-loop to show that she had seen, she took off into the night.

Lightnose, meanwhile, walked into the cave in high spirits. He was just about to go to bed, when he heard someone off to the side say:

"So, lover-boy, how'd it go? Tell me every last detail!"

'Kudos, can't it wait until morning?"

"Technically, it already is morning. You two stayed out all night."

"Oh."

"So, what happened?"

"Nothing important. Just helping me get better at flying."

"Uh-_huh_. And…" Kudos said, expectantly.

"Nothing else happened."

"Oh, really?"

"Really." Lightnose said firmly, but there was a lack in his tone that suggested more.

"Okay, maybe none of _that_, but did she say anything?"

"She just asked…"

"Just asked what?"

"If I was from around here, and all."

"And what did you say?"

"I told her I wasn't."

"You do remember the fact that you will be leaving soon. Too soon to really get to know your _lady-friend_."

"I told you, nothing's happening between us. We're just friends."

"Uh-huh." Kudos replied, sounding unconvinced.

"You don't have to believe me if you don't want to, but don't tell anyone that, please?"

"Okay, I promise."

"Thanks."

There was a long pause, then Kudos asked:

"So, how are you going to do it?"

"Do what?"

"Tell her that you won't be staying."

"I…don't know."

"Better get thinking; you have to leave in four days, I think. Could be less."

"Right."

"Just so you know, Ahi's over there." Kudos said as he gestured toward a small figure lying on the cave floor near some rocks.

"Thanks." Lightnose replied, making his way over to his friend. It was then that he realized that there were small grooves on the floor near her right hand, and there was a slight grin.

"Apparently, both of you made some progress." Kudos called from his nook. Lightnose gave Ahi's sleeping form a small smile before he curled around her, placing his wing over her before drifting off himself.

* * *

So, my first shot at a bit of fluff. Pathetic, or no? Please R&R!


	32. Chapter 32: True Fire

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Life is...pretty boring. Oh, by the way, misspelled the band name from my last chapter. It's real name is Santana.

* * *

Chapter 32: True Fire

The next morning, Ahi sure had a story to tell Lightnose, all about the new type of vision she had acquired, and what she had been able to do with it.

"I was just focusing on pulling the energy, when all of a sudden, it pulled into my hand! It was a ball of silver-purple, stuff! And I threw it by accident…"

"And completely obliterated a tree." Kudos finished. "Definitely need practice."

"I was only able to do it a couple times, though. After the fifth time, I kind of ran out of energy, and conked out right on the floor. So, how was your night?"

"I got better."

"Good, but I think you know what I was asking."

"Not you too!"

"No, no! I just wanted to know how you and your friend were doing."

"Oh, that. We're not that way, you know."

"_Really_?"

"Really. You're starting to sound like Kudos."

"And is that a bad thing?" the sprite in question called from his spot in the wall.

"No, not at all." The two friends said in unison.

"Right. Go on outside and practice, you two. Go on." Kudos groused as he ushered the two outside.

It took them a few minutes to recover from being moved from one place to another faster than they could blink, but then, and idea entered Lightnose's head.

"Ahi, can you teach me how to do that sight thing of yours?"

"Umm, maybe…You have to focus…Listen to the sounds around you. Sync with the forces around you, and open another set of eyes."

Lightnose followed her instructions, and as he got to the part where he had to open the other eyes, he had to suppress a gasp. It was like a whole new world had been opened up, right before him like a pop-up book. Everything had an aura around it, like it was all alive.

"W-what is this?" he asked, and was surprised to hear his voice take on an echoing tone, like he was in a cave.

"It's another way of looking at things. What we're seeing is energy. Cool, huh?"

"Yeah. Pretty cool. So, how'd you get to project this?"

"It's not that hard when you can see it. Watch." Ahi replied as she stuck out her armored hand. While Lightnose was watching the array of nonchalant colors that encased the metal, he realized that there was a small gathering of the aura in her palm. It grew and grew until it was the size of a baseball, and mostly composed of silver-purple-blue energy.

"There it is. Why don't you try something?"

Lightnose thought a moment before finally setting on an idea. Concentrating on drawing the energy needed together, he inhaled deeply, held it in for a moment, then exhaled…_fire._ And not just a short little burst, either. This fire had the quality of a blazing forest fire, and was the same color as the energy that Ahi had managed to gather.

It was not until he realized that he was reducing part of the ground in front of him to ash that he stopped.

"Looks like this helps both of us." Ahi remarked, looking at him with an incredulous eye.

"I'll say." Lightnose replied as he exhaled once more, slightly relieved that he hadn't become a walking incinerator that time. "So, how do I stop this?"

"What?"

"This. The sight. How do I stop?"

"Just pull away."

Lightnose closed his eyes, and felt the awareness he had had before slowly slip away. By the time he opened his eyes, all the color was gone, and everything was back to normal.

"That was incredible." Was all he could say.

"I know. By the way, Lightnose?"

"Yes?"

"Have you ever seen a really huge dragon?"

"Besides…"

"No, I'm not talking about Dragon or Shadow. I was talking about a really, really big dragon." And she went on to describe the dragon that she had been seeing, in the mirrors, and when she had first used the sight.

"I think I have. Not quite sure where, though." Lightnose said, paw tapping the ground lightly as he thought back. An old memory began to rise to the surface of his mind.

"Yeah, definitely think so. As for where, still not so sure…" he trailed off, deep in thought. It stayed silent for a couple minutes, then Kudos decided to join the two friends.

"What's eating you two?" he asked.

"I got a good fire going." Lightnose announced, to which Kudos raised a suspicious eye to.

"How? What did you learn from it?" he asked, catching the young dragon completely off guard.

"I…er…um…Learned how to concentrate hard on pulling the energy?"

Kudos sighed, mulled over what Lightnose had said for a moment, and then said "Alright, good enough for the 'what I learned' part, but _how_ did you do it?"

"I just sort of opened my eyes." Lightnose replied vaguely, but it seemed to be a good enough answer for Kudos, who gave a knowing grin and said "Good, good."

"By the way Lightnose, we are going in about two days. I hope you realize that." Kudos continued.

"Yeah, yeah, I know…" Lightnose muttered, then did a double-take "Wait, what do you mean by 'we'?"

"Shadow and I are coming too." The energy sprite replied casually, moving back toward the cave, leaving the two in another bout of silence as he left.

* * *

Meanwhile, things were very quiet at the store. Well as quiet as it gets with Jakku, Dan, and Tigre having a three-way arguement about something that even they had forgotten. Julian, Kai, and Alken, meanwhile, were just sitting in quiet conversation, and trying to block out the ever-mounting ruckus that the other three were making. Kazi was nowhere to be seen, and the others had assumed that she had gone to watch over the store. Well, they _thought_ she did, that is, until Tigre said something that broke up both conversations at once.

"Urgh. What smells like it's been dead for about five centuries?" Tigre exclaimed, holding his nose as an unbearable stench drifted into the room.

"Hey!"

"Not you, Jakku, that!"

Dan, Julian, Kai, Alken, and Jakku suddenly all became very aware of the reeking stink that seemed to be emanating from the kitchen.

"Please tell me she isn't cooking again. I barely survived last night." Dan muttered, slapping a hand to his forehead. "Julian, you are making dinner tonight, right?"

"Uh, actually…"Julian started, and was instantly met by a flock of shocked, stunned, and livid stares.

"She chased me out of the kitchen. What was I supposed to do?"

"Grab onto something and refuse to leave, what else? Now we have to suffer through another one of her 'home-cooked' meals…" Tigre moaned, head resting in his hands.

"It's times like this I'm glad I don't eat." Alken and Jakku said in unison, then Jakku made a break for the front door.

"Hey, where are you going?" Dan asked.

"Out. If Kazi asks, tell her I jumped ship." Jakku called back, and the door closed lightly behind him.

The others looked at the door longingly, but they were too late, for the next second Kazi walked into the room, holding a large pot in front of her that contained what looked like pig slop.

"Who's hungry?" she crooned as she pulled out a ladle.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the river bank, the two lone dragons were enjoying the night as best they could, considering that it was drizzling lightly. Bones looked up at the sky with an annoyed expression on his face, which Sakana did not fail to notice.

"Something wrong?" she asked lightly as she climbed out of the river.

"I hate rain." Bones replied bluntly.

"Why's that?"

"I don't like getting wet."

"Why?"

"This is why." Bones replied, bumping himself on the back of the head so water spilled out of the socket. For a second, Sakana thought he was crying.

"So, did you meet the newbie vessels?"

"I actually did. Yes."

"Well?"

"They don't know that they are the ones, don't bring it up, will you?"

"Okay, okay."

"But, they are just really coming to notice this world. Compared to you, they are still hatchlings. But, I did notice some similarities between them and Reki."

"Physical, or mental?"

"Both."

"Now that's scary." Bones commented lightly.

"Don't be too quick to judge. They're actually very nice."

"They won't be when Reki wakes up."

"Let's not worry about that right now."

"It's not something we shouldn't worry about until later."

"I know."

"Am I interrupting something?" Jakku asked as he emerged from the shadows just in time to catch the last couple words of the conversation.

"Not really. I thought Julian was cooking tonight."

"Kazi kicked him out of the kitchen and took over. How're things over here?"

"Wet." Bones replied, shaking himself like a dog to get somewhat dry, and showering his two companions with water.

"Did it look like we need the shower?" Jakku protested, earning him a cocky look from Bones.

"It sure smells like you do."

"Ha ha."

"You worried about Kal that much?"

"Maybe a little. It's her first time running things alone, and you know how she gets under pressure."

"Right. The scary bit that likes to terrorize humans in the dead of night by scaring them into hysterics?"

"Yes. That."

"Oh, well, we can just go as soon as the gathering is over." Bones suggested.

"Wasn't saying we had to leave; what I said was I think we should check up on her at least once, you know."

"Oh. But how?"

"That part I still haven't worked out."

"Yeah, that is a stumper."

"Reki's powers would probably work." Sakana suggested.

"I'd like to get to know the two first before I ask favors." Jakku cut in.

"I know. I was giving you an idea."

"I'd better get going. Kazi's probably stopped by now." Jakku said, turning back towards the village.

"See you around." Bones called after him as Jakku deformed into a gray shadow and started on his way.

* * *

Dragon was up in his cave for the first time that day. It hadn't been raided again, much to his relief, but something seemed to have changed. He couldn't quite place it, but there appeared to be a new luminosity about the area. Maybe it was just the fact that there was a small change in the inscription; it had turned to a pale gold, or was that just his imagination?

Either way, he was too tired to ponder it over now. Sleeping was the first priority, figuring out what was going on came later. Settling down, Dragon vaguely noticed that sleep reached him a lot faster than usual. And with that, he sank into his dreams.

Jakku was running along the edge of one of the stately manors of Kippernia when he felt the pulse again. It felt like it was further away this time, but he wasn't going to loose it again. He jumped from the roof to the ground, and headed off in the direction of the pulsation. In the window of the manor, Gunther looked out in shock. He had just seen a boy, probably only a few years older than him, from the look of it, jump from the roof to the ground, and not even be hurt by the fall. He just took off running into the woods.

Even more baffling was his appearance. His clothes were all black, and he appeared to be in the type of garb a dead person would wear. It was an old suit, with a black collared jacket, and black, slim-fitting pants. His hair was pure white at the top and front, and black at the back and sides. And (Gunther rubbed his eyes a bit to make sure he wasn't seeing things) his right arm was bones, and they didn't look human at all, considering that they were embalmed with long claws and a paw-like appearance. He didn't get much time to gawk since the other boy ran of into the forest like lightening.

Gunther crawled over to his bed in a state of slight shock.

_I must have just been seeing things. That's it. I must have been seeing things. _He thought as he pulled the covers over his head to mull about what exactly he had seen.

* * *

It wasn't until he was about halfway up the mountain that Jakku noticed the exact origin of the pulse. That cave. Dragon's cave. But why there?

Jakku slowly approached the cave mouth, warily at first, then more relaxed as he heard the light sounds of snoring reach his ears. He looked in to see Dragon, out cold at one end of the cave. The pulse was definitely coming from in here; it was one of the strongest things that he had ever felt.

He took a few steps in, and then spotted the writing on the wall. It was definitely an old spell, older than old. Ankoku was right, it was a protection spell, no doubt about that.

But the pulse. Where did the pulse come from?

The answer to that question came with an especially strong wave seemed to almost rip through the air. This time, he was able to pinpoint the origin.

"Dragon?" he murmured softly, in some amazement. How did he…? That sight was supposed to have vanished a century ago. Jakku's thoughts were interrupted as an idea entered his head.

_I think I may have just found a way to see what Kal's up to._ He thought as he carefully placed his hand on Dragon's forehead. Focusing on what he wanted to see, he tapped into Dragon's mind.

_It was a foggy hillside at a full moon._ _At first, it looked vacant, but it didn't stay that way for very long. A hunched figure scurried over the straggly grass, carrying what looked like a sack and a shovel slung over its back. It moved towards a select spot on the hill, dropped the sack, and began to dig. The figure wasn't alone, however, another figure, tall and lanky, rose out of the fog like some kind of a specter. A low moan escaped into the night air, and the first figure turned wildly around, but by that time the gangly figure had vanished into the mist. The hunched figure hurriedly resumed digging his hole, this time in a more careless fashion. Dirt was being flung everywhere as the being continued to dig a hole. This was obviously a very frazzled person, and not in the best health, from the way he was breathing. He also kept shooting random, frantic glances over his shoulder, as if he was sure that he was being watched. _

_Once the man seemed to think the hole was deep enough, he picked up the sack, and tipped the contents into the hole. It was the chopped up body of a young boy! _

_As soon as everything was in the hole, the man paused in a moment of silence, just to see if there was anyone around. Unluckily for him, he was about to find out. The second figure arose spookily from the mist, and began to creep up behind the man. The figure had long, flowing raven-black hair, and seemed to be wearing a completely black garb of a suit, sort of like what Jakku was wearing. It's face was completely hidden by it's hair, but it was obvious that it was a girl, probably no older than 16, maybe even younger. _

_She began to walk slowly, but eerily, towards her target. This would be too easy; the man had not even noticed nor turned around. As she crept across the grass, black flames began to rise up over her body, and, with in minutes, she had become a flaming phantom, covered from head to toe in the black fire. _

_The man seemed to have realized by then that something was amiss. He turned around, and found himself face to face with a black flaming being that was about twice his height! They stayed there for a moment, eyes locked with each other, until the being broke the silence with a high-pitched cackle that was loud enough to wake the dead. This seemed to break the spell on the man, who took off down the hill, shrieking in pure terror. As the being watched, the flames slowly faded away from its body, its face was thrown into sharp focus by the moonlight. Now the being was back to the girl, her face was a pale shade, and her eyes were a calm silver. _

_She watched the man go running through the fog, screaming his head off. A small chuckle escaped from her as she turned back to the hole that the man had only filled up halfway in his hurried plight. She plunged her hand into the soil, and came up with a glowing, pulsating figure that was about the size of a newborn child. _

_Once she had it firmly in her arms, it snuggled into her body for warmth. A look of pity and liking crossed her face._

"_Don't worry. I'll look after you." She said in a calming, soothing voice as she turned and moved through the fog._

Jakku removed his hand from Dragon's forehead. He had seen all he needed. Kal was handling things fine, there was no doubt about that. No need to worry.

He slowly crept out of the cave, and out into the night to go back to the store once more. As he went, he just caught the small movement of Dragon curling a little tighter as he resumed his dreams.

_Sorry about using you like that. Hope you can forgive me. _Jakku thought sincerely as he left.

* * *

It was a beautiful, clear night in Dragon Valley. The wind ruffled lightly through the trees as the stars twinkled lightly in the sky. Lightnose honestly couldn't appreciate it more, considering that he might not see it again.

Sure, tonight was beautiful, but there was also a lagging pull of inevitability beneath it. The type that comes up when you know that something is bound to happen, whether you want it to or not. Lightnose resolutely stood on the bank of the lake, not to watch the stars, but to watch for Verina. Kudos had reminded him for about the fiftieth time that evening, so he finally went to go tell her the truth. He honestly didn't want to do this; he wanted to stay perhaps a little longer, but Shadow had told him that it wasn't possible. The break between the dimensions was a fragile thing. If they went through even a day or two later, they could end up in a completely different place from then where they wanted to be.

In short, he would just have to face facts, and even things out. Wasn't that part of being friends, never keep secrets?

He was snapped out of his gloomy thoughts by the sight of Verina looping around in the sky, probably coming down for a drink.

Losing his nerve, he dove into the bushes just as Verina landed on the same spot that he had just been standing.

_Why now? Why can't I just do it? Why can't I just tell her what I need to say? Oh, why, why, why…_ he thought, quietly pounding his head in frustration and self-pity. This stuff was a lot harder than it looked, that was for sure. How did humans do it? He had heard from Ahi about all the kinds of stuff that happened in the bar between couples. What she had told him wasn't exactly encouraging; he could either get slapped in the face, get a drink splashed in his face, or get called, well, he didn't really want to think about it. Then a whisper from behind him nearly scared him half out of his wits.

"Well, are you going to do it?"

He flinched and twisted his head around to see Ahi standing next to his front flank.

"How'd you sneak up on me?"

"You were thinking too hard to notice anything around you. It wasn't that hard."

"What am I gonna do?"

"Go and tell her. If she really is your friend, she will understand and accept it, like a friend would do."

"Right, but what if…?"

"Just relax." Ahi reassured, gently patting his forehead to help him calm down. He looked at the ground, wishing that he had never given in to Kudos, and that he had never come out here in the first place. Ahi, noticing his despondent look, added "Are you afraid of hurting her feelings?"

"I guess."

"Well, then let me put it to you this way, would you rather her knowing that you'll be gone, or have her just wake up in two days and find you had disappeared sometime during the night?"

Lightnose thought the two options over, and realized that she was right. He had to do this. Giving Ahi a grateful smile, he moved out of the bushes. Verina happened to see him coming, and asked "So, how're you doing?"

"Fine. I need to tell you something."

"Go ahead. I don't bite."

"I will be going in two days. I don't know if I'll be coming back." Lightnose spat out in a hurried tone, wanting to get the whole thing over with as fast as possible.

Verina was silent for a moment, causing Lightnose to add "But I'll come back someday. Don't you worry about it."

"It's okay. If you have to go, you have to go. I just want you to remember something."

"What is it?"

"You are one of the best flyers in this valley. I really mean it." Verina stated, but there was something in her words that said she wanted to say more.

"Is that all?" He replied, and, to his surprise, Verina blew him a quick puff of smoke to his face before taking off into the sky.

"Oh, she did not just…"

Lightnose snapped out of his state of dumb shock, and turned around to see Ahi and Kudos standing behind a cluster of bushes on the edge of the clearing, looking like they both had just been slapped in the face. A smile began to work its way over Lightnose's face as he realized what Kudos meant.

"Go ahead. You've still got two more days, right?" Ahi said, giving Lightnose a grin which he returned as he took off into the air with a loud whoop that just about woke up half the forest.

* * *

So, please R&R! Review are greatly appreciated!


	33. Chapter 33: I found a Way!

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

I'm sooo sorry that I haven't updated in a long long time! School caught up to me once more...Damn, I hate homework...

Either way, enjoy, and please review!

Quote of the Day:

"**Robert Goren**: The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. It tests social adjustment.  
**Alex Eames**: I remember this. We had to take it the last year of high school.  
**Robert Goren**: So did we.  
**Alex Eames**: How'd you do?  
**Robert Goren**: I had to go to my counselor's office and have a talk with the school shrink. "Law and Order, Criminal Intent

* * *

Chapter 33: "I found a way!"

Dragon awoke the next morning with a start. What happened last night? He had a few scattered images, and none of them were all that reassuring. A chopped up body of a young boy in a hole, a hunched over figure trying to bury it, and the black-flamed figure. He shuddered lightly, trying to forget the reflections. Probably just a bad dream. That's it, a nightmare.

Feeling a bit better, Dragon walked out onto the outcropping, spread his wings, and took off through the sky. No point in thinking about nightmares now. It was high time he started to get back with the rest of the world.

He gave a small chuckle as he remembered exactly what was probably going on down in the practice yard today.

As for getting back with everything, he could start by giving Jane some advice on how to handle Gunther.

* * *

Bones was, in most respects, one heck of an annoyed dragon. He was wet, muddy, and he now knew why riverbanks were not a favored sleeping spot during a rainstorm. Mumbling a couple choice words under his breath, he continued trying to pull his tail out of a patch of mud.

"I don't get it. You can stand decay, you can stand organs, you can even stand dismemberment, and the only thing you can't stand is mud?" Sakana asked in some bemusement as Bones resumed flicking the mud off of his front paws.

"You wouldn't like it either if you got stuck in it."

"Guess I wouldn't. Oh, by the way, those newbie vessels will be coming back late tomorrow." Sakana remarked, causing the surprised Bones to accidentally flick some mud into his eye.

"W-what?" He cried as he tried to blink out the offending gook. Sakana sighed as she recited the old rule.

"You know how it works. One day here is three days there. They were supposed to be there for twenty-one days, about three weeks here."

"You know I'm not good with numbers, Sakana."

"They left at the beginning of two weeks ago. Does that help?"

"Sort of."

"What are we going to do with you?" Sakana said in a half-joking, half-serious tone.

"You could help me get this mud off." Bones suggested as he tried to soak it off in the river.

"Didn't know that today was bath day, Bones." Said an amused Jakku as he walked casually out of the forest, and right into the scene that consisted of Bones trying to scrap some rogue mud off his arm, and Sakana stood by, trying to hide her own smile.

"I can't help the fact that there's mud in places I didn't know I had. THIS IS WHY I HATE RAIN!!" Bones roared as he angrily tried to scrape the more stubborn flecks of filth off his nose.

"Okay, okay, we all know how much you hate mud, but we really don't need to hear you screech about it." Jakku commented angrily, rubbing his aching ears, which just so happened to have been very close to Bones's angry shout.

"I don't know how you too can be so alike yet so different." Sakana shook her head in disbelief.

"Look who's talking. You and Kazi are practically complete opposites. For one, you don't get as mad as she does when someone calls her, you know." Jakku commented.

"Good point. We're not that different, you are." Bones pointed out. Sakana seemed to mull this over, and then she suddenly straightened up and called "Hello, Kazi!"

That sure shut the two undead friends up. It took them a couple minutes to realize that she was joking.

"Very funny, Sakana. Hilarious." Bones replied sarcastically.

* * *

It was early morning when they set off. Mist still hung in the air as the dragons, half-blood, and energy sprite came out of the cave.

"We're flying back, by the way. Doesn't make any sense to walk when we can both do it." Shadow called to the three behind him. Kudos rested in Ahi's cupped hands, and she sat on Lightnose's back, ready to go.

Before they took off, Lightnose took one last look around. He might never see this again. Never. He might as well look his fill now. Not that there was much to see, but he knew that, if he looked hard enough, he might see a familiar cluster of turquoise scales.

But he didn't, and there was no time to brood now. It was time to move on.

Ahi noticed the hesitance in Lightnose's movements, the longing in his eyes, and gently patted the warm dark purple-black scales.

"Lightnose!" Shadow called, bringing the young dragon back to earth.

"Huh?"

"Are you ready to go, Lightnose?"

"Yeah, all ready." He replied. No turning back now.

And with that, the four of them rose into the sky, headed for the edge of the Dragon Valley.

Memory after memory floated back as they all looked down for the final time. Saving Lightnose from Nymr, learning how to bend energy, the sight, the fire, new friends, and Verina.

It may have been hours, but to the reminiscing group it seemed like only minutes later when they reached the swirling clouds that hid the mountain range from their sight.

"We can't go through it, so let's go over." Shadow called back, wings beating powerfully to lift him higher. Lightnose followed suit, rising on the wind. Then, above them, there appeared a thick cloud bank. Shadow didn't even hesitate; going straight up, he shot right through it. Lightnose was a bit more hesitant, but when he got up there, all three jaws dropped. It was like they had walked into another world. The fog was in the formation of a twister that pulled up through the clouds. Shadow just so happened to be waiting on the other side.

"C'mon Lightnose! You can make it!" he called, forcing Lightnose out of his awe. Now realization hit him as he looked at the vortex, and then where Shadow was. Guess he'd have to at least try. Taking a deep breath, he shot forward, and into the twister. At first, a barrage of galling winds came up to meet them, and Lightnose was glad to feel Ahi and Kudos hanging on for dear life. But, as soon as it had come, it stopped. Lightnose cautiously opened an eye to see that he was in the center of the twister.

_Kind of like the eye of a hurricane._ Ahi thought as she looked around at it all.

They only got to see it for a second, for Lightnose's momentum carried him straight through the wind.

Once he was safely on the other side, they continued through the clouds, and out to the forest that held the key to their return.

* * *

Jane was practicing with Gunther in the yard when Dragon arrived, with a shout of 'Hit him on the right! No, wait, I mean the left!' Just like old times.

"Is it just me, or is there a breeze in the air?" Gunther called as Jane's stave just missed his shoulder. She retaliated, not with words for once, but instead proceeded to jab forward with the end, completely catching Gunther off guard. He stumbled back, and landed in a pile of what looked suspiciously like dung, much to the amusement of Dragon.

"Ha ha, very funny, lizard." Gunther muttered, even though Dragon was roaring with laughter and obviously didn't hear him at all.

Jane stayed respectfully quiet, but there was a noticeable amount of sniggers coming from her lips as well. Embarrassed, Gunther slipped out, reddish blush creeping up his face.

"I see you are in good spirits." Jane remarked as she turned back to her friend, whose laughter was slowly subsiding.

"Good as ever. Patrol?" Dragon asked, allowing Jane to hop on. Seconds later, the two friends went off into the bright sunshine.

It was a few minutes before either asked anything that related to the events of the past week.

"So, how have you been?" Dragon inquired lightly, expecting a usual answer in return, but instead he got something a bit different.

"Fine, I suppose."

"What do you mean by 'I suppose'?"

"Well, the whole thing with the livestock isn't over yet…"

"And that means…" Dragon droned, although he probably would regret asking later.

"Unless I can bring the king some evidence that you are not the one responsible, you are banished."

Final, and completely crushing the good mood that had been there just minutes before. Dragon sighed. This was getting to be a real annoyance, and he knew for a fact that he wasn't the one responsible!

"Well, let's just think about getting something that will change the king's mind." Jane said reassuringly, but even she wasn't sure how they would solve this one. The assailant had left virtually no leads at any of the bodies, only enough to make everyone think that Dragon was the culprit.

Another thing that kept bothering her was Alken's description of the two vessels of darkness, Ankoku and Itami. And the thing that threw everyone off, the black flames.

Drawing out of her thoughts, she noticed her friend's uneasy silence.

"Don't worry, we'll find something." She comforted, running a hand soothingly across his scales. Dark thoughts cast aside for a moment, the two soared through the air, trying to enjoy the bright day for what it was worth.

* * *

There was an almost tense air around the small shop that afternoon. Kazi was looking after the front desk, just in case someone came in. Julian was fiddling with a piece of metal, making it bend to his will with lightning. Tigre was pacing the floor like a caged panther, while Dan lollygagged somewhere upstairs. Alken was blowing around scraps of parchment, and Jakku messed around with the insects in the kitchen. They were pretty fun to manipulate; sending them in circles helped to ease his impatience, but it did nothing to distract him from the fact that the new vessels were coming back later. Only hours remained now, but they were going so slow you would have thought that time itself seemed determined to make them all crazy with waiting before night fell.

As for the incident with Dragon, he hadn't told anyone about it, yet. It was fairly clear that he had no idea of what it really was, so it was probably a better idea not to blab something that even he didn't know yet. Ah, it'd probably come up later anyhow.

As for Hannashi, he still hadn't turned up. He was in the area, that was for sure, he just didn't come to the store yet.

_Knowing him, he probably forgot where the store even is._ Jakku thought with a sigh. Resigning himself to the fact that he would be playing around with the bugs for the rest of the afternoon if he couldn't find anything else to do. Might as well go see what Bones and Sakana were doing. Alken, noticing Jakku heading towards the door, asked "Can I go with you?"

Minutes later, the two were lightly traveling along the roof of another shop, headed right for the dragon's hiding place.

"Amazing how much people can live in one place, let alone shop in it." Alken remarked as he observed the many humans below going about their business.

"Yeah, I honestly can't say much for personal space in this town." Jakku replied. Even though they were able to see the people below quite clearly, they obviously couldn't see them. With Jakku's ability to go invisible, and Alken's to blend right into the wind, they were totally nonexistent to the rest of the world.

Or at least, that's what they thought. As Alken scanned the crowd once more, he caught a familiar flare of black hair, with a gray streak running through it. Looking below it, he spotted two red eyes, and a sneer etched into the person's face. Ankoku!

His concentration shot, he lost his connection to the wind, became visible, and dropped down into an alley with a loud clang. Jakku was at his side in a flash, but he wasn't feeling too sympathetic at the moment.

"What were you thinking? Someone could have seen you!" Jakku hissed as he attempted to pull the dazed suit of armor to his feet. The hunk of metal confused the undead teen even more by pulling into the shadows as fast as he could.

"_Ankoku is here_!!" he whispered loudly, gesturing toward the main road for proof. The teen made sure he was still invisible before checking the crowd and the street. But, even though he looked over the individuals twice, and sometimes three times, but he still came up with nothing.

"Are you sure you saw him?"

"Very sure. Nobody sticks out as much as him."

"He's not there now. Still though, let's cross around a bit before we actually go to the hideout. If he is following us, he'll get bored and be drawn off."

The next hour and half, the two moved through the woods, doing everything from going around in circles to going through rivers. After a while, when they were sure that they weren't being followed, they finally went to the riverbank hideaway.

"Where have you two been? I thought when you said you were coming, you would be here in a few minutes."

"We sort of got sidetracked on our way over. Have you happened to have heard from Hannashi, Tsuin, or Kaijin?"

"None of them. Pretty odd for them to go underground."

"If they're trying to avoid Kazi, not really."

"Good point.", Alken said thoughtfully, "Although Kazi hasn't really said anything about them."

"She is sort of apprehensive about them coming. I guess it must be about what he did last time." Jakku suggested, and everyone went silent as the obviously awkward moment was replayed in their minds, although none dared to actually voice it.

"Hey, Jakku, when are they new ones supposed to come back anyway?"

"Oh, a bit after……sunset……" Jakku trailed off, now noticing the suddenly very obvious orange-red glow in the sky.

Another silence overtook the group, but it was soon broken by Jakku's cry of

"WHY THE HECK DIDN'T SOMEONE TELL ME THAT IT WAS SUNSET EARLIER??"

A couple minutes and frantic long mile dashes later, Alken and Jakku were pretty much bursting down the back door of the shop, stumbling into the room, only to be met with several annoyed glares, and one very livid one.

"Um, h-hi guys?" Jakku stammered before Kazi grabbed the front of his shirt, pulled him up to her face, and shrieked

"GIVE US A WARNING WHEN YOU TWO GO OFF LIKE THAT!! YOU NEARLY GAVE US ALL A HEART ATTACK!! A **NOTE** WOULD HAVE BEEN GREATLY APPRECIATED, BUT NO-O, WE GO ALL THE WAY TO GOD-KNOWS-WHERE, AND LEAVE EVERYONE ELSE IN THE DARK, AND WE JUST THINK THAT'S OKAY?!"

"Kazi, calm down. I'm sure they have a reasonable explanation for this if you'd _just let them talk._" Kai said, and Kazi recoiled to the other end of the room to mutter angrily to herself while Alken told the story, since Jakku was in complete and utter shock from the verbal bashing he had just received.

"We were on our way over to see Bones and Sakana at the hideout, just for a quick visit, when we saw Ankoku in the crowd on the main road. And we wanted to be sure he wouldn't follow us, so we ran around in the woods for a while to make sure. By the time we felt it was safe to go see the dragons, it was sunset." Alken stopped, feeling the many uncomfortable stares boring into him like a drill. "What?"

"Ankoku saw you?" Kai inquired, a hardness creeping into her voice.

"We don't know if he did."

"But you did see him?"

"Yes."

There was a long silence as Kai contemplated this disturbing bit of news.

"Well, we do have to go. We've stalled long enough." Julian pointed out, gesturing that the sun was just about gone from the sky. Realizing his point, the others prepared to go. Jakku was just about halfway out the door when Kazi grabbed his arm, mouthing 'This isn't over.' Great, and Kai probably wouldn't stop her this time. Oh well, no time to think about that now.

The small procession moved toward the woods, keeping a valid eye out for anything suspicious. But, thankfully, no shadowy figures followed the group. They stopped only once to pick up the two dragons from the hideaway, and then moved on. Through careful navigation on Kai's part, they managed to reach the pool within fifteen minutes. Once Kai, Kazi, and Jakku activated the portal within it, an odd black shape appeared to rise up from the depths of the water. Kai and Kazi, realizing what they were, pulled the other four out of the way just in time for Shadow to touch down and for Lightnose to, well, fall down. Once they had picked up the dazed dragon, half-blood, and sprite, introductions came around.

"Ahi, Lightnose, these are our less-than-normal friends, Jakku, Bones, and Alken." Kai started, and let Jakku take it away.

"You see, the reason why we were a little secretive about them showing was that I don't think you would believe us right away. You'd need to see them yourself."

"Oh, come on, Kai. You're talking about me like I'm some kind of fairy tale." Jakku complained sarcastically with a small grin. "Nice to meet you. Name's Jakku, by the way." He added, friendly proffering a non-boney hand (this he kept respectively behind his back). Ahi shook his hand jovially, and Lightnose was introduced to his new field-mate, Bones. Paws were shaken, and that night, new friends were made, and the two parties each headed back that night they both thought that the surprises were over for the week. But they were wrong.

Ahi carried the tired Kudos, who was worn out from the fast flying, and the dimensional jump, up to her room later that night. But something was out of place. On the bed lay a long, thin, wrapped-up package, illuminated by the moonlight that streamed in through the window.

"What is that?" Kudos asked curiously as Ahi moved silently toward the bed, wondering if it was some type of joke from Tigre.

She brushed her fingers lightly on the object's surface. It seemed to be…cloth? There was definitely something hard underneath it. After getting an affirmative look from Kudos, she carefully lifted the flap of material to reveal…a sword.

It was about the same size as a sword you would find on a knight, but there were several differences. For one thing, the handle wasn't like that of a sword, more like the type of grip you'd find on a spear, the blade was thinner, and the scabbard's leather was worn from years of use, but, as Ahi carefully unsheathed the blade, there was a carving of what looked like a bird, probably a nightingale. Ahi's attention was drawn away from the sword by Kudos's whisper of "I think a note just fell out."

Indeed there was, lying on the rough blankets, in a pool of moonlight. Ahi cautiously plucked it up and unfolded it to read the contents.

_I happened to find this in a store one day, and recognized it for what it was. It was supposed to be an heirloom for you, but it was taken by thieves. I hope you cherish it, and remember that it came from your sire._

_A friend_

Ahi foggily refolded the slip of parchment, and moved the sword to a higher spot on her shelf. An heirloom meant it came from family, right? So this sword might have been her father's, or her grandfather's. Finally, here was some solid proof that she might have once had a family, and that they might be out there somewhere.

Turning back to the bed, she noticed that Kudos had moved to her bedside table, and was now fast asleep. With a small grin, Ahi followed his example. Within minutes, she too was slumbering blissfully, completely oblivious to the rest of the world.

* * *

Sry about the long wait guys! I'll make it up to you, I promise! As soon as schoolwork tones down, I should be updating with no problem, I swear! Either way, please read and review!


	34. Chapter 34: Saving for The First Time

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

Trying to update faster, since I'm on a bit of a time rush. I've got my mom on one end threatening to take away my computer, and camp coming up (I'll be gone for a month). Thought it would be a bit bad if I left everyone hanging, since I got a pretty good ending in mind. Oh well, I don't plan the school exams sched either. That's another problem. /

Anyway, enjoy the new chapter, and please review! :)

* * *

Chapter 34: Saving for the First Time

That morning, Kai happened to bring up the fact that since Ahi was so far along in controlling energy, then they should move on to the next bit: putting energy into other things. She also said that since Kudos was an energy sprite, he would be Ahi's practice energy conductor. Kudos's objections were quickly silenced by the fact that he would not be used to channel energy into something complicated until later. The chosen training site was a field just beyond the riverbank. It was wide, open, and it was framed by tall willow trees that proved useful for hiding in during stealth drills.

They set out early that morning, refreshed and willing to see and learn. At first, Kai made Ahi and Kudos start small, the first thing that they tried to force energy on was small rocks to make them hover in the air. As Kudos was driving his power into them, they began to glow with a purplish- silver-cadet blue light. Ahi sat on the ground in a meditating position to concentrate her focus on keeping the rocks in the air. Using her sight, she also pulled the wind energy to help keep the rocks aloft. Lightnose watched this intently, as he worked on his own flame. It had gotten much stronger, and it was easier to call forth now. Julian, Tigre, and Dan were practicing their own forms of training as well, hand to hand combat. The three were using their own forms of fighting, but it all blended for a spectacular display. Jakku had gone over to the riverbank to avoid the rush, and Kazi, Alken, and Sakana were making small ice crystals to stay sharp in their own skills. Kai was supervising them all, giving Ahi the occasional helping hand if she needed it.

After the sun had risen to the center of the sky, the group stopped practicing for a break, and lunch (Jakku had come back with some fish from the river.). Unfortunately, starting a fire was once again proving to be difficult.

"Urgh. Me and fire just doesn't get along…" Julian muttered as he tried to get even the smallest blaze going.

"I'll do it." Tigre offered, proffering a flaming hand.

"How? You can't even get a good blaze going."

"Just wait 'till Hannashi comes. Then you'll see true firepower…"

"No." Kazi flat out replied; despite the others best efforts to sway her verdict.

"Kazi, why don't you want Hannashi to come? He seemed alright to me." Julian asked.

"Well, it's mostly because of the fact that he's a bit of a philanderer." Kazi explained, then, catching the blank looks from her audience, she added "A womanizer."

That got the message across for everyone except Lightnose who cast a side-a-long whisper to Ahi.

"What's a womanizer?"

"Umm, oh, look time to get back to work." Ahi said as she excused herself from the group to go back to energy training. Dan, Tigre, and Julian all gratefully followed. Lightnose turned to Kazi, Kai, Sakana, and Shadow.

"What'd I say? All I wanted to know was what a woma-whatever was."

For a long, long period of silence, all of the others present did not know exactly how to break it to him. Then, Kai let out a deep sigh and finally spoke

"Well Lightnose, let me put it this way. For you, especially in that moment, ignorance certainty is a bliss."

"But what is…"

"A womanizer is a man who puts his hands in places where they don't belong." Kazi answered, glowering.

"Oh, is that it?" Lightnose asked, not quite getting the full meaning of the definition. The others all rolled their eyes.

"Well, it goes like this…" Shadow started before Kazi could cut in again.

A little while later, Ahi was still practicing when Lightnose came over, eyes wide and jaw dropped to the point where she could fit in his mouth. While taking in his frazzled appearance, she gave a knowing look and asked only one question.

"So, did they tell you everything?"

"Yes."

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Physically, yes, I'll be fine. Mentally, not sure. Of all the times I can't shut up…" He moaned, causing a small giggle to come from Ahi. She walked over and gently stroked his head.

"How do you live with it?" He asked.

"Well, to be completely honest, I don't really think about it."

All Lightnose replied with was a groan as he covered his eyes and just lay there for the rest of the training period.

* * *

Jane, meanwhile, was practicing her own form of training. The dummy in the practice yard had never gotten a better workout, you might say. There was only the small slip-up in which she did not duck fast enough, and wound up on the ground with the dummy's appendages wildly flinging over her head. Ordinarily this wouldn't be too embarrassing, if it weren't for the fact that Gunther had seen the whole thing and was now laughing as if he had just heard the most hilarious joke in history.

"What's so funny?" she asked sourly, causing the squire to stop chuckling for the moment.

"I see we are learning how to evade a crazed dummy today, eh, Jane?" Gunther replied, causing Jane to shoot up indignantly.

"Then how about I teach you something!" she cried, setting the stage for another showdown between the two.

Several hours, and several verbal and physical later, the two were finally broken up by the sight of Sir Theodore entering the yard. The two abruptly stopped when he began to speak.

"After much consideration about the events of the past week, Sir Ivon and I have decided to give the two of you security posts. Gunther, you shall stay around the castle as a century, and Jane, you shall patrol around the village and farms." He declared, and the two squires hurried off to start preparing for their guard roles.

There was only one person in the stables that morning. Jester was busy sweeping the floor when Jane came in.

"Good morning, lady-knight." He greeted once he looked up as she walked in. "I suppose you heard about the new security."

"My role is to go and patrol the outskirts of the village. Gunther is on century duty."

"I'll be sure to bring a bucket of cold water this time, just in case." Jester joked, as the two remembered the last time that Gunther had been put on century duty, when he was trying to outdo Jane in job count. He had fallen fast asleep from exhaustion, and was later woken up with a bucket of cold water because Sir Ivon had caught him sleeping on duty. The incident still lingered in their minds, but they were nice enough not to bring it up.

Whether or not the scenario would be repeated remained a mystery, but from the drudgery he had to go through last time, he seemed to have learned his lesson. But then again, with Gunther, you never really knew.

With Jester's help, Jane had Cleaver ready to go within the hour. Since Dragon had been under so much lately, Jane felt it was only fair to let him have a bit of a break. Even though he would probably be annoyed by the fact that she was riding a horse instead of him, she knew he'd most likely be grateful for the extra rest. And with that last thought, Jane mounted Cleaver, said goodbye to Jester, and rode off down the road to start her patrol of the village.

* * *

"Okay, let's go at it again." Tsuchi said with a bored sigh. This was about the tenth day of them arriving, and yet they had never left these caverns at all during that time! It was burning him up!

And Kaijin wasn't making it any better by convincing him to play parchment, sword, and rock for the umpteenth time that day.

"So glad you saw it my way, now, let's go!" Kaijin replied enthusiastically as he placed their right hand in position to begin another round. And, once again, Tsuchi was soundly beaten. He was getting so darn sick of this! Hannashi had better come back soon with the ever-hopeful news of leave, or this duo-drake would be short a head!

And, speak of the devil, he did come, and with some possibility of leave (though it was probably to keep the two of them from going nuts).

"We might go soon, but I sort of want to avoid going to the shop just yet."

"Why's that?" Kaijin asked.

"Kazi's there."

That two-word reply explained everything. Even Tsuchi had to suppress a shudder. Kazi was why Hannashi had stayed away from everyone else for six months. Especially when he had sort of asked her out after giving her a hard time about her lover (that she eventually left anyway). Just to show her how it worked, he himself hit on several girls, but he never went further beyond a quick kiss, maybe a little fondling… Hey, he was a crazy, young teenager. It was even _encouraged_ in his town. He had a lot of time to get familiar with the customs of his town after his dad…he didn't want to think about it.

"We're going to have to go eventually, you know." Tsuchi started, causing both heads to swing in his direction. Hannashi looked up to notice the concern in his hazel eyes. That was a shocker; he never usually looked concerned. Mostly bored and uninterested, but rarely concerned.

"You're right. If we wait any longer, it will just get worse." Hannashi stated, and the duo-drake both volunteered to help in some way with the plans to leave and inform the others.

"I can send them a message via flame." Kaijin volunteered, leaving Tsuchi to the task of figuring out how the duo-drake was going to get out of the caverns without being seen. A real headache. The real problem was that the caverns appeared to have only one way out, which meant that they would have to try flying over the town, and that probably wouldn't end well at all. If there was another way out, it wouldn't be big enough for them to slip through. Another but a lot more drastic way would be to go through the fire, but that used a lot of power in itself, also not a great idea, especially with _him_ lurking around. Yes, Tsuchi was well aware of the fact that Ankoku was in the area, he had heard Hannashi mention problems in the town's livestock. Something about them being found dead. If he knew his acquaintances well enough, it was no problem guess who had done it. Only Ankoku and Itami would go through the trouble of getting their hands on animals, and then going and pinning the blame on someone else. Typical.

Tsuchi shook his head lightly to clear it, and headed back to the original topic. What to do about getting out of here?

Maybe if they flew out at night or if they could get a hold of Alken they could ask him to make the skies a bit less, open on the night they wanted to leave. That might work.

And with that, Tsuchi rounded off the thought to go tell the other two of his solution.

* * *

It seemed to be a bright day outside the dark, dimly lit caves. The sun shone brightly, the birds were twittering serenely, and everyone in the village-kingdom of Kippernia seemed to be in the highest of spirits. The harvests had been successful, there hadn't been any livestock killings in a while, and the weather couldn't have looked better.

Dragon slumbered through all of this, but for once, no strange dreams came to trouble him. It was purely restorative sleep. Bliss.

But one stayed in a cave further up the mountain, waiting for their time to come. Ankoku was patiently waiting out the day, when he could arise and stalk the areas of Kippernia that would usually be out of his access, at least in daylight. At night, everyone was asleep, and if they weren't, well, he could slide past them any night. No problems there. None at all.

While Ankoku was in his little reverie, Itami waited patiently for him to him to say something. This was irking him a bit; he had been absorbed in his thoughts a lot lately. It wasn't like him to be thinking this much. But, then again, there had been a lot of setbacks lately. Enough to put some major cramps in their plans.

Suddenly Ankoku straightened up as if he had been hit with a magician's spell.

"What is it?" Itami asked, curious at his master's sudden change in behavior.

"I think I found something that might ease our boredom. The girl-knight is out patrolling the farm areas."

"Are we going to use her to draw the dragon out again?"

"No, we won't go personally; one human isn't worth that. We'll just send in a greeting." Ankoku said with a sinister-looking grin.

And with that, he placed his hand firmly on the rocks, and a numerous amount of black sparks surged into the stone, heading down the mountain within seconds. Ankoku's grin grew wider as he thought about what would happen once night came through once more. That squire better be a good runner.

After awhile, the other half-bloods and the dragons went back to the respective riverbank and shop, leaving Ahi and Kudos alone to finish practicing together. They had made some progress, not a great amount, but at least there was something there that they had managed to achieve in that one day of practice. Ahi could now force Kudos to become integrated with small things, like rocks and long twigs and such, but nothing big yet. Kudos was beginning to get tired of being forced into various objects, and finally he snapped and just told her to take him home already. Ahi reluctantly agreed, and the two were heading home on the main road when Ahi picked up the sound of a horse walking down through the fog that had kicked up. Unwilling to be subjected to the questions that would most certainly be asked if Ahi was found at dusk with a sword and an energy sprite on her person, Ahi dove into the shrubbery just as Jane, on a horse, rode by their hiding place.

"You know her?" Kudos whispered, seeing that Ahi flinched when she made out who the person on the horse was.

"I met her once. She told me that she was in training to become a knight. Her name is…"

"Jane Turnkey?"

"How'd you know?"

"There aren't that many girls that are in training to become knights. It isn't that hard."

"Right."

"Guess we should just head back to th-wait a minute…"

"What? What's the matter?"

"There's a weird energy in the air. A dark energy. Not good."

"What do you mean by a dark energy and why is it not good?"

"It's a hostile energy. It's definitely not good for anyone in the area. We should leave."

"What about Jane?"

"She's on a horse. She'll be fine." Kudos replied, although he really didn't sound that sure.

"We're going to see if she needs help." Ahi insisted, pulling Kudos along for the ride. They tailed Jane along for about a mile, with the fog getting thicker and thicker, and the energy getting more and more potent. Ahi used the sight to get a better look, and, unlike ordinary vision, it wasn't hindered by fog. She could see black shapes in the woods, and they seemed to be moving along at a quick pace. They did appear to be following the lone figure on the horse, that was certain. Ahi's eyes narrowed as she quietly trailed along.

Jane, meanwhile, may not have had the eyes Ahi did, but that didn't mean that she was oblivious to what was around her. The forest was too quiet. Even with the fog, there should have been at least a couple woodland animals about. There was also the uncomfortable feeling of being watched. Jane was about to just go back to the castle, when something darted in front of Cleaver, and the horse bucked with a loud whinny, startling Jane. She almost slid off, but managed to cling on in order to push Cleaver into a gallop. That didn't really do any good, since the shapes continued to dart around, spooking Cleaver and sending shivers down Jane's spine. The worst came when one of them actually stopped and jumped up, right in front of them.

It looked like a lizardish rat, that was the first thought that came into Jane's mind. But, on further examination, it was more like an amphibious rat with black, warty-looking skin. Its figure wasn't entirely clear, but sort of like a solid shadow. Now poor Cleaver had just about had it with all of these figures, and she neighed, rearing back so fast that Jane didn't have time to cling to the saddle, and she slid off with a sound thud. Now she had no way to get away fast enough, and she also was hindered by the thick fog that now seemed to swirl around her. Jane whirled around just in time to see several more of these figures emerge from the fog. Pulling out her sword, she hoped that she could get far enough so that she could at least get help. If she survived this.

* * *

"Come on, just one more time!" Ahi begged as she tried to force Kudos into the hilt of the sword.

"No, we can use some other way to beat them, you don't have to keep shoving me into places I don't even want to be in!" He rounded this off with an annoyed harrumph, and refused to go anywhere. Then, a loud neigh and a thud caught their attention.

Kudos gave a light sigh.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" he asked reluctantly. Ahi nodded firmly, and drew the sword, which now seemed to glint in the dulled light from the moon. There was a small flash as Kudos pushed his way into the hilt of the sword. To their surprise, the blade grew in size! It was now about the magnitude of a cleaver, but several times larger than that. With a new enthusiasm, Ahi quietly slid out of the bushes, and moved silently toward the sounds of a scuffle about a few feet away.

The creatures were beginning to close in; Jane could hear clicks, gurgling, and loud chirps as the shapes drew closer and closer. Just when she thought that they were about to leap at her, there was a sudden movement in the fog, and the noises instantly stopped. There was an eerie silence in the air before Jane turned just in time to see an even larger figure, about the size of a bear, rear up on its hind legs. She blinked, and the next second, a tall, lanky figure jumped out of nowhere, swinging a huge sword.

One slash, and the bear-like figure practically disintegrated at the second one's feet. Then it turned, and Jane caught a glimpse of yellowish eyes with dark purple irises, rounded off with white-silver pupils. Another second and it had vanished as quickly as it had come.

Jane blinked again, wondering if what she had seen wasn't just a trick of the light. But a swoosh and thump from behind told her otherwise. She whirled around once more just in time to catch a second of the same tall figure before it vanished just like it had before. It seemed like it was on her side, but Jane pulled her sword up protectively just to be sure.

Suddenly, something pounced on her from behind. She got a disgusting whiff of what smelled like rotten eggs, dung, and what also smelled suspiciously like something that had died, before whatever it was was suddenly yanked off her. There was an odd chinking noise, and a strangled squeal before something hard landed a few feet away.

Jane turned he head to see the fallen figure of one of the amphibious creatures, disintegrating right before her eyes. She flipped over just in time to see the tall figure shove its cleaver-like sword into the chest of another huge, black figure. The bearlike figure disappeared, leaving the tall one alone in the mist.

Suddenly the figure turned, and within seconds, had run at a space over Jane's head and sank the sword into another amphibious shadow that had been just about to jump her again. Now Jane got a very good look at the figure, noting that it had very long, silver hair with dark purple streaks, it was wearing black clothing, and its eyes stood out more than ever, while the rest of its face remained in shadow. The sword had a weird aura around it, a purplish- silver aura. It looked plain creepy. Just as Jane gasped, it pushed her up from the ground and to the side of the road. Spitting out a mouthful of mud, Jane looked up to see that the figure had pushed her out of the way in order to avoid her getting her head knocked in by another bear-like shadow. The thing's arm had gone and hit the tall figure's left arm, knocking her back several feet. Jane could hear the small panting breaths of the downed figure; the hit had done some damage.

The bear-sized figure slowly stomped over, intent on another easy hit, but Jane came up behind and stabbed it dead in the chest, like she had seen the tall figure do. The thing gave a loud, shrieking shout, before disintegrating just like the others. As soon as that happened, the fog instantly blew away like it had never been to reveal a clear night, and the tall person lying in the middle of the road.

"Are you alright?" Jane called, running out to check on the individual, but she seemed to be out. Now that she got a good look at the person's face, she could tell that it was a girl about her age, but probably a bit too tall for the number.

The sword she had used was lying right next to her, clenched in her right hand. The aura was gone (Jane assumed that she must have imagined it, but she missed Kudos ducking out of sight just behind Ahi's collar.).

But that was the least of her worries. She was suddenly distracted by the faint trickle of blood from the other's left arm.

She needed help, badly.

Jane carefully resheathed the girl's sword and her own before hefting her up so that she could place her limp arm around her neck. Turning up the road, she began the long trek back to the castle.

* * *

Speaking of REM sleep, I could really use some of that...Zzzzz...


	35. Chapter 35: The Odd Ones

I don't own Jane and the Dragon.

I did say I would be updating sooner, right? Bad time planning and exams pretty much've put a leash on my time. Darn.

Oh well. Can't choose the schoolwork, now can I?

And yes, I am very aware of the fact that some people might not like the ideas that this story is built on. If you don't like crazy ideas, OCs, made-up stories and legends, or just things like what I'm doing, please don't flame me over it. There are a bunch of fanfiction in this archive that don't have any of this. Please go and read them if that's what you prefer.

Long story short, it does say unleash your imagination for a reason, folks.

Now that I've got that out of the way, on with the story.

* * *

Chapter 35: The Odd Ones

Jane pulled the limp figure over the drawbridge and to the knight's quarters. The bleeding that had managed to subside somewhat, which was either really good or really bad. She still hadn't woken up or even moved, which was also making Jane wonder if she had received more than one hit in that fight.

One thing was certain, she had never seen this girl in the village before, but something was oddly familiar about her, even though she couldn't quite put her finger on it. The young squire hurriedly dragged the girl up to a room in the knight's quarters that hadn't been used in years (You could tell from the thick layer of dust on everything.), and had carefully placed her on the bed. She had to move her so that her feet didn't hang off the end.

The clenched right hand still held the air around it in a vice-like grip, and for a second, Jane thought she saw a flash of purplish-silver travel up the arm. How odd. And the sword wasn't cleaver-sized, as she had seen in the fog, but it had shrunk to the size of her own sword. This was definitely not normal.

She waited for a few seconds before going for help. Luckily, she managed to catch Gunther practicing on the dummy outside. It took some convincing, but she managed to get him to at least see the girl, which in the end convinced him to help her get some healing supplies. When they got back to the room, Jane could swear that she saw a flicker of the same aura next to the girl's shoulder. It was there for about a second, then gone in a blink of the eye. Jane shook her head just to make sure that she wasn't still loopy from getting pushed to the side of the road.

When she was sure of the fact that she hadn't hit her head any harder than she'd thought, she carefully reached over to the collar of the girl's shirt and pulled it down to reveal a dried crust of blood on her shoulder. Jane grimaced lightly as she tried to clean it off. At first, she was having quite a bit of difficulty, but after a few minutes, the crusting came off easily.

Surprisingly enough, there wasn't much of a cut. Just what appeared to be a slight bruising that really didn't seem to be too problematic; it could heal on its own.

Jane now just caught the glimmer of the aura by the bedside table, and reached out to get it. Her hand clamped down on something warm and slippery. She pulled out a very startled and very disgruntled Kudos.

"Hey, watch it! Hands off the energy, sister! I need that!"

"What are you?"

"If I tell you, will you let me go?"

Jane gave the wriggling sprite a stern look, but it didn't really hide the wonder that was welling up inside. Was this what was healing the girl's injuries?

"Well, okay. My name is Kudos and I'm an energy sprite. A being made out of energy." He quickly explained, and wiggled sharply so Jane would drop him. He landed lightly on the bed covers, and curled up next to the comatose girl's hand.

"Oh, and by the way, she'll probably wake up in about a day. The sleep is purely restorative. That's why that cut was healing so quickly."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"So you don't think she's dead." He answered plainly. "Oh, and secrecy would be appreciated. Thanks."

Jane was slightly taken aback. Was he telling her to leave, or snubbing her into leaving? The answer came when he looked at her again and said "You don't have to stay. I'm sure you've got other things to do, being a knight in training and all." He waved her off through the door, then turned back to the out-cold Ahi.

"How'd I let this happen…?" he murmured to himself as he watched the small rays of the sunlight trickle through the closed shutters. How in the world was he going to explain this to everyone?

* * *

Speaking of everyone, it did not go unnoticed that Ahi didn't come home that night. Not by Lightnose, anyway.

"Are you sure that she's not at the shop?" he asked an irate Kai for about the hundredth time that morning. Even though she was trying to do her best when it came to the keeping Lightnose from going off and looking for her himself bit, his constant questioning was really beginning to wear her down.

"No, but everyone's looking. Will you relax?" She replied irritably. Lightnose opened his mouth to answer, but decided against it, and went back to pacing the perimeter of the riverbank.

* * *

Jakku and Alken happened to be in the town, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, under the same techniques so as not to be seen by normal people.

"Now, where could one kid and one sprite be this early?" Alken asked, bemused. There was barely anyone on the street, just the usual drunkard stumbling home after a night of booze.

"Not sure. Guess we'll find out, though." Jakku answered as his eyes when he saw a familiar looking head of silvery hair down on the side street. "Hey! That looks like her! OI! AHI! KUDOS!" He called, darting down to the figure he had assumed was Ahi. Alken, however, saw one small problem in that theory. The person Jakku was going up to was too short, and had no sword strapped to its back.

"Wait, JAKKU! THAT'S NOT AHI!" Alken called, but it was too late. Jakku had already tapped the person on the shoulder. The figure turned to reveal an old woman with an extremely shocked look on her face.

"Oh, wait. You…aren't her…Oops…Sorry…"

But it seemed far too late for any type of apology to be understood, for the woman fainted dead away. There was a long silence before either Jakku or Alken spoke.

"…Well, what do we do with this?" Jakku finally uttered, gently nudging the unmoving heap on the side of the street.

"We should put her someplace where she won't get stepped on, for a start." Alken suggested.

"Good plan." Jakku replied as he hoisted the comatose lady up onto his shoulder. "Urgh…she's definitely been drinking the booze too long…smells worse than some of the remains at a morgue."

A few minutes later, Alken and Jakku were walking away from the limp figure of the woman, who they had left in the care of one of the other drunk-yards that happened to be trudging home. Apparently, he was her husband.

"Hope that wasn't a really big mistake. Like the ones we usually have a tendency to make." Alken mused worriedly as he looked back just to make sure there wasn't any lasting harm done.

"You mean the ones that I'd make and blame you?" Jakku asked with a sly grin as the two of them walked away, once again undetectable to the human eye.

"Sun's coming up. We should go back." Alken said shortly, also trying to hide an inward nostalgic smile as he remembered all the times that their little excursions usually took that turn.

Turning back in the direction of the store, the two headed home as the early morning mist began to fade with the rising night.

* * *

"Any luck?" Kazi asked as the armor and the undead teen walked in through the back door.

Two inconclusive faces further sunk the small bit of hope that had managed to surface when they entered. Kazi slumped back into her chair, a hand holding her head.

"Where on earth could that kid have gotten to?" Jakku wondered aloud. Even though it wasn't for the first time, no one had an answer for his question.

* * *

It was around afternoon that Jane decided to go check on the girl. Dragon was also interested in this bit of happenings, as he was perched on the wall outside the knight's quarters. He tried to peer around Jane as she lightly pushed the door open. Kudos wasn't near the girl's arm anymore, nor was he anywhere in sight. The girl looked no different than before, but there was a slight rise and fall of her chest and a flush of color in her face. She, in all respects, looked somewhat like she had a fever, but when Jane felt her forehead just to be sure; it was surprisingly cool to the touch.

"She looks sick to me." Dragon commented from his spot on the wall.

"Doesn't feel sick…" Jane mused, then stopped as her eyes noticed movement under the other girl's.

They were flitting around as if seeing things flying across her vision. Was she having a nightmare of some kind?

"Jane!", Dragon hissed, cutting through her thoughts like a knife, "Old Rusty Legs is out looking for you! Something about a tracking lesson."

Jane let out a gasp and ran out the door, completely forgetting to shut it behind her. Dragon was about to nudge it closed, when he saw a funny-looking glimmer of light inside. He pulled the door open a little further and looked inside carefully.

Everything looked normal enough. Dismissing the glimmer as a trick of the light, Dragon shut the door quietly.

As soon as he was sure that the visitors were gone, Kudos drifted out from under the bed. This was, hopefully, the last time he would have a three second warning. And that voice from outside. Must have been the dragon that dwelled in these parts. He had heard Kai talk about a girl that was a knight in-training that also had a dragon for a friend. He didn't actually think it could happen, though. Humans were notorious for trying to get rid of dragons. Wasn't that why them and the other creatures were moved to the Overworld? How'd this one avoid that outcome?

Oh well, back to the real world. Kudos watched as the color in Ahi's face took on a more normal hue. He'd better let the others know that they were here. They were probably worried frantic as it was. No sense in delaying any longer.

Kudos sighed as he let loose a pulse that would not be felt by humans, but hopefully be picked up by Kai, Jakku, or anyone that could understand what it meant. Knowing how sensitive they could be, it probably wouldn't be long before one of them was showing up.

* * *

Kai was finally home after a long early morning stay at the river. Slumping down into a chair, she stared absentmindedly at the fire brewing in the grate (courtesy of Tigre) when her eye caught something out of place. The fire had acquired an almost unnaturally flamboyant dash of red that flickered around like a slip of paper.

Kai slowly lifted up the headband that covered her eye, revealing a patch of emerald green scales, and a closed eye. This eye slowly slid open to reveal a dilated, stormy black pupil, pale green irises, and a yellowish tinge to the area around it. It was the type of eye that seemed like it was piercing through you like a dagger. One thing was sure, it was no human eye.

As it looked deeper and deeper into the fire, the flick of bright red became a flat surface bearing the words:

_Hello whoever gets this,_

_We're in the area. Let us know when's a good time to come. _

_Tsuchi_

_Finally._ Kai thought as she looked over the name. Using the black armor on her arm, she pulled the ashes in the rate into the form of a pen. She carefully scribbled out a reply into the same tongue of fire. Lucky thing Hannashi had given her a couple pointers, or she might not have been able to reply at all. Eventually, she had composed a small reply right underneath the original message.

_Was wondering when you guys would make your presence known._ _You can come now; we've got a room ready. If there are any problems, just let us know._

_Kai_

And with that, she sent it on its way.

* * *

Jakku was out looking again, at Kazi and Kai's insistence. This time, however, he was alone. Alken had to stay behind. Something about keeping Kazi out of the kitchen.

He was probably about a ways away from the castle when he stopped short. There was a strong, rippling pulse in the air. It wasn't the one he had felt when he had found out about Dragon's little talent, but it had a lot more force and it was a bit more direct.

The people down below seemed to be unaffected by it. They just went along with their business, like nothing was wrong.

Jakku flinched as the pulse ripped through the air once more. This time, though, it felt more urgent. Definitely coming from the direction of the castle. Now with a clear destination in mind, Jakku set off.

* * *

It was a typical day in Kippernia castle, for most of the castle staff. For Dragon and Jane, however, it had to be one of their more unusual ones. Hiding a comatose girl in one of the knight's quarters was a lot easier said than done. Apparently Sir Ivon had left something in there the other day, and he kept trying to go back for it throughout the day. Jane, however, could not seem to find the object (he was looking for something called the 'Boomerang of Vengeance').

It was around lunchtime when he decided to make final stand. Unfortunately, only Dragon was there to attempt to stop him from entering. Thinking and acting fast, he knocked over a cluster of barrels in the yard. Of course, it didn't really do much to stop Sir Ivon, who threw open the door and walked right in.

Dragon waited for some kind of an explosion, or at least an exclamation, but the room remained unnervingly quiet. A few minutes later, Sir Ivon walked out, carefully cradling his 'Boomerang of Vengeance', which resembled a curved metal rod with spiked balls on each end.

Watching him go back to his room, Dragon couldn't resist a small peek to see if the girl was still there.

But, when he lightly tapped the door open, he saw not only the girl on the bed, like nothing had happened, he also saw a small flare of purplish-silver, and Jakku, of all people, standing right next to the bedside!

* * *

Sorry to cut you guys all of with a cliffhanger, but if I wanted to ever get a new chapter up, I had to cut it kinda short. Hope you all don't mind.

See ya l8er!


	36. Chapter 36: East Meets West

I don't own Jane and the Dragon. Sry, been away at camp. Anyway's, glad to be back, but might have some trouble updating due to plans my family's making this summer.

But enough about my dreary lifestyle. Enjoy the new chapter! :)

* * *

Chapter 36: East Meets West

"W-what…how…why are you…."

"Now that's leaving out where and when, right?"

"You forgot who." Kudos commented from next to Ahi's shoulder. "And please rephrase the questions. We can't exactly understand stuttering."

Dragon took a moment to marshal his thoughts, and then said clearly

"Why are you here, how did you get here, and what are you doing here?"

"I'm invisible to everyone but you, remember? It's easy to make other things invisible as well. As for what and why, I know this kid. She's actually in the place I hang around at. I was just coming to take her back."

"She isn't dead, is she?" Dragon asked, causing Jakku to break out into a fit of laughter so strong that even Kudos joined in.

"Dead? Do you honestly…" Jakku started, but then thought better of it. "No, she isn't. The folks back home are just worried is all. I'm the escort home."

"The folks?"

"Just others like me and her. I don't think you'd know any of them."

"Well, when are you going?"

"That could be a problem. I can't make someone else vanish as easily as I can. Long story short, I can't take her back without someone else to back me up. I have to wait awhile, till night at least."

"Oh."

"Just make sure no one comes in until then." Kudos said concedingly as Dragon now had that 'what do you want me to do' look on his face.

"Alright, so keep people out. That's it?"

"Just do that. As for the rest of the situation, you don't have to worry about a thing." Jakku replied, and the rest of the conversation was cut off by a voice from outside.

"Dragon, who are you talking to?"

Jane. That caused quite a flurry with the conscious occupants in the room. All of them jumped and Jakku gestured frantically that Dragon close the door, which he did with a loud slam.

"N-nobody! No one!" Dragon stammered as he whirled around to face Jane, who had her hands on her hips and was looking at him like a stern mother would. He'd always hated that quality of hers. It made her able to worm anything out of him. He fidgeted nervously under the look that was usually followed by more prying. This time though, he insisted on that little white lie that said he was alone. When Jane had finally gone in order to practice with an irking Gunther, Dragon let out a barely audible sigh of relief. Something told him that today would definitely get stranger.

* * *

Even though the outside world was bright as a fairy hill, and there wasn't a cloud blocking off the bright sunlight, Tsuin and Kaijin couldn't have told the difference. They were busy waiting on that reply from the others. Tsuin gave a small shudder as he thought about what Kazi might have put if she had gotten it.

Probably something along the lines of bug off in some more colorful language. Or maybe a personal jibe. With Kazi, you could never really guess.

A sudden flicker of red on the ground caught the duo-drake's eyes. It flared up until it was a small flame no bigger than a sliver of their claw.

It was a good minute before either of them said anything.

"You open it, Tsuin. You put your name on it."

"You were the one that wrote it. You open it."

"But what if…?"

"Kazi doesn't check the fire, remember? More likely that Alken or Kai got to it first."

"Then why don't you open it?"

"Just in the small case that Kazi did find it…" Tsuin trailed off, letting the thought hang. Another minute went by, and still the small flicker hadn't even been touched. Both heads were staring at the thing as though it were going to explode if they took their eyes off it.

The next cry of 'What're you two doing' pretty much scared the both of them out of their wits. They spun around just in time to see a curious Hannashi striding up the cave.

"What's that behind you?"

"Oh, nothing."

"If it's the reply, let me see it."

"Maybe later!" Kaijin blurted out, causing the teen to look suspiciously at him.

"What's wrong with now?"

"Err, not the right time?"

"And when is the right time?"

"Oh, about three weeks from now."

"Kaijin, stop playing games. Now, is that the reply or not?" Hannashi asked in an annoyed tone, hands on his hips.

"Kaijin, just give it over to him." Tsuin injected tiredly. With a reluctant sigh, the right hand of the duo-drake quickly scooped up the small tongue of fire, and forked it over to the impatiently waiting teen, whose eyes went to a rustic red color as he studied the small flicker.

"It's from Kai." He finally said. Tsuin rolled his eyes and Kaijin looked greatly relieved.

"She says that it's about time we showed our faces, that they've got a room ready, and to let us know if there are any problems."

"There might be one."

"What's that?" Hannashi asked, tearing his eyes away from the glimmer of fire.

"How on earth do we get out of here without anyone seeing us? We aren't exactly the type of thing that you'd see everyday." Tsuin explained. Hannashi seemed to mull this over, and then asked "So, any suggestions?"

"We could ask Alken to give us a bit of a cover. Fog." Tsuin thought aloud, chin resting on his fist.

"You know, that just might work. I'll tell Kai to tell Alken." Hannashi replied, and started off to go make another fire to send the reply.

Tsuin watched him go and murmured to himself.

"And it will be a miracle if we can pull this off."

* * *

The store had remained relatively quiet without the antics of Jakku. Everyone knew that he was known for keeping long hours off by himself, but this felt unnatural. Finally, Kai and Kazi decided on what to do about the matter.

"Alken!"

"Yes?"

"We need to see you for a moment."

Alken followed Kai into the other room, confusion filling his mind. Why did they want him?

He got even more nervous when he saw Kazi in a chair opposite him. Had Jakku just pulled a really big prank and dragged Alken into it again?

Some of the worry must have showed, because the next thing he knew, Kai was saying "Don't worry, Alken, you haven't done anything wrong?"

"Has…"

"No, Jakku hasn't done anything either."

That put his mind at rest. A loud sigh echoed from his helmet. However, it was soon replaced by a slight hitch of breath.

"…so, why am I here?"

"We just need you to go see what Jakku's been up to and if he found out where Ahi and Kudos are yet."

"Alright, sure." Alken replied as he started for the door. Just as he was a few feet away, the door flung open with a bang, and Tigre was standing there, looking very irate and very rushed.

"Someone else has to go watch him now! It's like trying to stop a fast-moving fire! Pointless!" He cried, clapping a hand to his forehead.

There was a long silence before Kai lightly rubbed her temples in irritation.

"Wasn't wishing to do this, but he leaves me no choice." She let out a deep sigh, and then continued on with a solemn "Kazi, you go and be the babysitter. If he tries to leave the clearing, you give him the works, got it?"

"Right, right."

And with that, Kazi walked out the door into the back alley, and was soon followed by Alken.

* * *

The citizens thought it was all just an unnaturally powerful wind that blew through the market, but in truth, Alken was on the move. He looked in all the places that he and Jakku had looked, searched a bit more thoroughly, and still came up with nothing.

He was about to go back in frustration and defeat, but just as he was about a street or two away from the shop, he happened to get a glimpse of the Kippernia Castle.

Well, not the whole castles, really, just a turret or two. He'd always been careful to keep his distance from the castle, but today there seemed to be a pull in the winds, like something was telling him to go there. Odd feeling, but it nagged at him to the point where he threw up his metallic arms with a sigh and headed off in the chosen direction.

* * *

Needless to say, Dragon was having one of those days that were like sitting on a bed of hot coals. He was keeping one eye on the door of the tower, and the other on the sparing match happening between Gunther and Jane. The insults were really flying today.

"Fight fairly, varlet!"

"Then what should I do, wait for you to catch up to me?"

This continued for another ten minutes before a huge gust of wind ripped through the yard, and both squires broke away from each other, startled. Dragon was looking in all directions, for when the gale had blown through, he could have sworn that he heard a familiar voice whisper the word 'hello' into his ear.

During this small moment of distraction, he also failed to notice the door to the tower open ever so slightly, and then close just as quietly.

The temporary occupants of the tower had also heard the ruckus, and had seen the door open. As they looked on, Alken materialized in front of the door, a half-accusing, half-questioning look adorning his face.

"What on earth have you been doing? Everyone's a nervous wreck, all wondering where Ahi and you are!" He exclaimed, then cast an anxious look at the figure on the bed. "What happened?"

"First time fighting with energy-related attacks. It takes a lot out of you the first time you go at it."

"Why'd she do that?"

"Ankoku tried to off the Turnkey girl, and Ahi took out the darkness pawns he sent after her."

"Do you think it was just a random attack or something worse?"

"Could be either. You never know." Kudos replied with a small shrug. A small period of silence ensured before Alken could think up another question.

"Does anyone know you're here?"

"Well, the Turnkey girl knows Ahi and me are here, but not about the rest of us. The dragon knows we're all here except for you."

"As soon as night falls, we're out of here, alright? No need to get snippy about it." Jakku cut in. There was a long pause before he added "How about a game of parchment, sword, and rock while we wait?"

"Okay, maybe something else." He suggested offhandedly as the first idea was shot brutally down by the others' angry glares.

* * *

Yes, I know, filler chappie. Drumming up the suspense on ya. Sry. Kinda cut off from the internet due to the fact that my laptop can't be used. Updating will be slow till September.


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